Obtaining Your One True Love
by CielBerlitz
Summary: Due to a Jutsu with unexpected results, the males of Naruto find themselves in each other's bodies. To reverse the effect...? To have their one true love return their feelings, of course! R&R! SasuSaku, NejiTen, NaruHinaKiba, InoShikaTem. HIATUS
1. Prologue: Shinko Ai No Jutsu

**Obtaining your One True Love**

**A/N: Okay, since I haven't got any inspiration for 'The Decision of a Cherry Blossom', I decided to start another story. But no worries, I promise I WILL continue my other story - right now I just have no inspiration and no ideas. Anyway, this story will be a body-switch story which hit me last night. I hope you'll enjoy! **

**Summary: Due to a Jutsu with unexpected results, the males of Naruto find themselves in each other's bodies. To reverse the effect…? To have their one true love return their feelings, of course! R&R!**

**Setting: This story is set during Shippuden. Naruto and co have defeated Madara and Sasuke is back in Konoha. **

**Pairings: SasuSaku, NejiTen, NaruHinaKiba, InoShikaTem**

**Warning: Spoilers for those who don't read the manga!**

**Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and I am not making any profit by posting this.**

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Prologue: Shinko Ai no Jutsu

"And then…?" Ino asked eagerly.

"Then we sat down in the field before the sunset and he… kissed me and asked me out." Hinata finished with a slight blush.

The girls squealed in delight.

Ino giggled. "Who knew Kiba could be so romantic?"

TenTen sighed dreamily. "You're so lucky, Hinata-chan. The one I love only sees me as a team-mate and sparring partner."

Ino nodded, eyes blazing. "And mine's only interested in that Suna girl!"

"Mine has probably forgotten I even exist…" Sakura whispered sadly.

The three looked at her in pity: ever since Sasuke had been accepted back into Konohagakure, he had ignored his former team-mates and stayed inside the Uchiha compound most of the time.

Sakura suddenly clasped her hands together. "I've got an idea! Let's try some Love Jutsu to cheer ourselves up!"

The girls grinned and Ino dashed to her bookshelf, grabbing a thick book wreathed in a dark red cover.

"Since when…?" Sakura started, but Ino held up her hand and smiled mysteriously, not answering.

She sat down cross-legged on the floor and the girls came to sit beside her. Ino opened the index and trailed her finger down the list.

"There…!" TenTen pointed. "Obtaining your One True Love." She read.

Ino noted the page number and went to it, scanning through the book.

She nodded. "It says that this Jutsu allows all involved to find their one true love, though through unusual ways." She looked up. "Shall we try it?"

Hinata timidly nodded. "Although… I already know my true love is Kiba…"

Ino held up a finger. "You don't know that."

The girls all agreed to try it and, buzzing with excitement, sat down in a circle with joint hands, as the instructions said. Ino told them the name of the Jutsu and held up three fingers.

"Three, two, one…" She lowered her fingers.

"Shinko Ai no Jutsu!" **(1)**

There was a silence, in which nothing happened. The girls looked around the room, trying to find something out of the ordinary.

"Maybe we did something wrong?" Hinata suggested, but Ino shook her head, reading through the instructions again and finding not a single mistake.

TenTen shrugged. "It probably doesn't even work, anyway! I think it's just some book with fake Jutsu written specially for sleepover nights - like this one."

Ino yawned and made her way to her bed. "Let's sleep. We'll see tomorrow…"

The three remaining girls went to their sleeping bags lying on the floor and crawled up in them. Hinata and TenTen quickly fell asleep, but Sakura stayed awake a little while longer, somehow knowing this was not over just yet.

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**(1) - Translated, this means: True Love Jutsu. Although, I'm not sure if I got all the translations correct and if it's in the right order. **

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**A/N: Remember, this is only the prologue, so it's not supposed to be long! The next chapter should be up next weekend, probably Saturday. **


	2. Both Sides Now

**Obtaining Your One True Love**

**A/N: Okay, because there was an error (believe me, there was!) I couldn't upload the improved and rewritten Chapter 1. But it's all sorted now and ready for you to read and enjoy!**

**Oh, and because I deleted the other chapter, I'm just going to thank everyone for reviewing again:  
Gerkyhen, LadyMartel4000, Twisted Musalih, Miki-chann, ByakuganLove, Music-lovers2 and hikari98, thank you so much!  
And, of course, everyone who reviewed and/or favourited/subscribed!**

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Chapter 1: Both Sides Now

-- With Naruto --

Naruto yawned and slowly rolled out of bed, landing on the floor with a heavy thud. He groaned and glanced at the clock, which read 12.34 AM. He blinked sleepily a few times before making his way to the kitchen, grabbing a cup of 'Three Minute Instant Ramen' and poured it in a bowl of hot water, waiting impatiently.

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

Naruto sighed in annoyance and glanced at the ramen, wondering if he could answer the door and make it back in time. He shrugged in defeat and ran towards the hall. He slid open the door and smiled when he Sakura standing there, rummaging through her bag for something.

"Hey, Naruto," She greeted. "Kakash-sensei said we're having a team meeting this afternoon. Ah…!" She smirked triumphantly when she found what she was looking for. She lifted up her head and held out a scroll. "Here, this is…"

Sakura froze, the scroll slipping through her fingers. Naruto raised his eyebrows in confusion when she turned bright red and ran off with tears in her eyes.

"Sakura, wait, what are you-?" Naruto shouted, running after her. He saw a flash of pink hair disappear into the crowd and sighed, knowing he would never catch up with her. He walked back to his house and picked up the scroll lying on the ground.

'_Team meeting this afternoon; 3.00 PM at the Third Training Ground. Hatake Kakashi.'_

Naruto nodded to himself and went back inside, already smelling the ramen. He still had about three hours before the team meeting, so he had enough time to relax. Naruto smiled as he grabbed the bowl of steaming ramen and sat down at the kitchen table.

He looked up into the mirror hanging on the opposite wall and, like with Sakura, his fingers went numb, causing the chopsticks to slip through. He stared in shock at his reflection, seeing the shock etch across his features… well, not exactly _his_.

-- With Sasuke --

Sasuke groaned when the rays of sunlight hit his eyes and got out off bed. He narrowed his eyes when he noticed his body felt different, somehow… less athletic? He knew for a fact it was not because he had just woken up, because he always was in top-condition no matter what the time.

Activating his bloodline limit, the Sharingan, to search for any abnormalities in his Chakra, he was shocked to find he couldn't. He closed his eyes and tried, with the same result.

'_Have I been drugged?' _Sasuke thought, trying to remember if he had ever left his food out of sight.

It would be a logical conclusion, though. It would explain his slower-than-usual movements and if it had cut off his Chakra, then his lack of Sharingan would have a reason. But… who was the culprit?

Sasuke calmed himself and grabbed the kunai that he always kept near, even when asleep. He walked into the kitchen, being careful in case the culprit was still inside somewhere. He tried sensing for Chakra, but found none.

And then, all the calm he had mustered shattered to pieces when he saw his reflection in the mirror.

'_Genjutsu.' _Was Sasuke's instant thought, but then he remembered his Sharingan countered them. Unless he had been drugged, which had stopped his Sharingan from working, and _then _someone had cast a Genjutsu to unsettle him even more.

'_It could have been another Sharingan user since their Genjutsu's affect me. But that doesn't make any sense: Danzo and Madara are dead… I'm the last Uchiha. The drug? It would make sense if it were administered before the Genjutsu. Or maybe the Mangekyou is finally affecting my eyesight?'_

Sasuke's mind went through every possibility, yet he found none that made any sense. He tried a complex movement using the kunai and froze when it clattered to the ground after he failed to catch it: his movements were just not fast enough!

Sasuke felt the same fear arise in him that he experienced during the massacre and the final fight against his brother. The thought of losing everything he had worked so hard to gain… If all those years of training would turn out to be worthless, all ripped away from him… he didn't know how he would be able to bear that.

Sasuke blinked. The reflection stayed the same.

-- With Shikamaru --

"Hey, Ino," Shikamaru greeted as he entered the Yamanaka Flower Shop.

Ino was currently standing behind the counter, looking at the two seemingly identical flowers. She glanced from one to another and then examined the bouquet in front of her, eventually sighing and adding both plants. She turned to Shikamaru and smiled, surprised that someone like him was here.

"Have you seen Temari? I heard she was here in Konoha to drop off some things."

"Um, no," Ino tried to remember if she had seen that annoying blond, but didn't recall seeing her. "Why? Do you want to give her a flower?" She teased.

Shikamaru thought about that for a second. He was definitely not an expert on girls, but Ino often mentioned that girls loved gifts and loved explaining how flowers had different meanings, a perfect one for every situation. He nodded at his team-mate and walked through the shop, searching for the perfect flower.

"It's quite surprising, you know," Ino noted. "I never expected you to be involved with Temari."

Shikamaru looked up in surprise. "Oh…?"

He continued searching in confusion. He had always thought his affections towards Temari had been obvious, but apparently not. But then again, it seemed Temari herself hadn't noticed either. Maybe he just wasn't good at this stuff.

Shikamaru inwardly shrugged and paused at the roses, recalling they symbolised love. Although… which colour meant what?

"What kind of flower are you looking for?" Ino asked, sensing his ignorance. "Flowers have a language of their own, you know. There's a perfect one for every situation. For example, the red rose stands for love, but a yellow one means friendship."

Shikamaru mentally smiled as Ino repeated his earlier thoughts and thought about what kind of flower he wanted.

"I want a flower that portrays her personality, because I really admire her strong character, her will to never give up. But I also want it to reflect my love for her." Shikamary tried to explain, wondering if there even was a flower like that.

"Here! This one is perfect!" Ino plucked a flower the rest and showed it to Shikamaru. "It's called a Gladiolus and symbolises strength of character. And, since it's also called a Sword Lily, it resembles first love, as well."

Shikamaru took the flower and examined it. Seven white flowers with very light pink edges were attached to a stem with a few more buds. He smiled and thanked Ino, paying and quickly leaving the shop. This whole girl business was troublesome.

Back in the shop, Ino grinned and punched the air. This was perfect! If that Suna girl was taken then that meant Shikamaru was free for the taking! She couldn't wait to tell the girls about this as soon as he had finished working. The True Love Jutsu was working!

-- With Neji --

Neji calmly made his way downstairs and went outside to the garden in front of the house before breakfast, like he did everyday. She spotted his cousin, Hinata, already there, looking up at the sky, like she did everyday; it was one of the traits they shared.

"Hey," She greeted when she noticed him. "If you're looking for Neji, he's probably inside. He'll come down in a few minutes."

"Ah… what?" Neji tore his eyes away from the bird above, slowly shaking his head in confusion.

Hinata smiled, misunderstanding him. "He always goes outside after he wakes up."

Neji slowly nodded, too confused to speak properly. A few minutes passed in silence before someone wrapped his arms around Hinata's waist. She gave a cry of surprise and turned around to see her lover: Kiba. She smiled and hugged him.

"Hey," Kiba grinned when they broke apart, noticing Neji. "Can you tell Neji I'm going into town with Hinata-chan? Thanks!"

Kiba grabbed the Hyuga's hand and led her to edge of the garden, leaving their property. Neji had been too confused to say anything, but now he realised Kiba was leaving with his cousin! He was about to go after them when he remembered the reactions he was getting. First, he had to figure _that _out.

Neji tried to activate his Byakugan, but was annoyed to find he couldn't. He tried again with the same result, which started to worry him. This had never happened before.

'_Is my uncle having second thoughts about me joining the main family? Has he cut off my Byakugan?' _Neji wasn't sure that could be done, but it certainly was a possibility.

He shook his head, forcing himself to stop thinking like that. His uncle wouldn't do that! They had forgiven each other a long time ago, during the Chunin Exam. He knew their bond wouldn't be severed again.

'_So… what is it?'_

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Ino turned the sign on the door around to show they were closed when she noticed TenTen running towards her, making a worried impression.

"Ino, Sakura's crying and won't tell me what's wrong. You've known her the longest, so can you go talk to her, please? Maybe you'll find out what's wrong. She's at her house - I'll get Hinata!" TenTen explained, completely out of breath.

"Right!" Ino nodded and started running towards the house of her best friend, in the opposite direction TenTen was headed.

This was bad… Sakura (almost) never cried, unless it had something to do with Sasuke. Or if her friends were hurt. Ino wondered what could have upset her…

Before she knew it, Ino had reached Sakura's house. After saying a quick 'hello' to her parents, she ran upstairs and entered her room. Sakura was sitting next to the window with a photo of Team 7 in her hands. The crying had stopped and she was now simply staring at the picture; she didn't react when Ino entered.

"Sakura, what's wrong?" Ino gently asked. Her friend didn't answer. "Sakura, if you don't tell me what's wrong, I'll force the truth out of you! I'm you friend, remember! Sakura…"

"It's… Sa… Sa… Sasuke…" Sakur finally answered, her voice shaking,

"Sasuke!?" Ino was taken aback. "What did that jerk do!?"

Hinata and TenTen chose that moment to enter the room, both out of breath because of the running. Ino quickly recounted Sakura's words and the two girls promptly sat down on the bed, listening intently.

"This morning, I went to give Naruto a scroll about a team meeting scheduled this afternoon, when…" She broke off and tried again. "The door opened and it wasn't Naruto, but… Sa-Sasuke-kun… in Naruto pyjamas and…"

The rest of her sentence went unheard when Ino furiously jumped up and loudly cursed, making TenTen slowly slide away from her.

"Does that mean… what I think it means?" Hinata nervously asked, ignoring Ino's angry muttering from beside her.

"Of course it means what you think it means!" Ino shouted. "Naruto and Sasuke-kun are seeing one another! They love each other!"

Sakura nodded in agreement. "That's not what bothers me, though; I honestly don't care if they get in a relationship with each other** (1)**. But they could have told me! I mean, who knows how long this has been going on! I just… can't believe that Naruto… wouldn't tell me… I just don't know if I can trust him anymore…"

"Maybe it was just a… sleepover?" TenTen tried, instantly realising how ridiculous she sounded when Ino gave her one of her looks.

"Sasuke and sleepovers?" She raised her eyebrows and shook her head. "Besides, if that were true… then why keep it a secret? No, it has to be a relationship!"

TenTen sighed in defeat. "Sakura, just… go talk to both of them during that team meeting, alright? I think it's best if you hear the full story before making assumptions."

Sakura gave her a watery smile and nodded. The girls hugged each other before Ino made her way to leave with Hinata and TenTen. As soon as they were outside, Ino turned on the tomboy.

"So, how's your love life going?'

"Um… fine, I guess?" TenTen answered, startled by the sudden question. "Why do you ask?'

Ino didn't answer and turned to the other girl. "Hinata…?"

Said Hyuga member smiled brightly. "Kiba took me to this really romantic restaurant in the centre today! We spent the whole time talking and laughing… Oh, Kiba is so sweet - I love him!"

Ino nodded contently. "Now it's my turn! Guess what? Neji came into the shop today to buy a flower for Temari! They are totally going out! Which means… that Shikamaru is free and all mine for the taking!"

"Neji is going out with Temari!?" Hinata and TenTen shouted at the same time.

"Oh, yeah… I'm sorry, TenTen! I totally forgot about you loving Neji!" Ino blushed in embarrassment and lowered her head in shame, hating herself for only thinking about herself. "But… maybe that's all part of the True Love Jutsu? Maybe we have to overcome these kind of difficulties before we find our one true love…"

TenTen smiled a fake smile. "Yeah, that must be it…"

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**(1) - Sakura is lying here. She does mind them being together, but doesn't want to seem weak in front of her team-mates. **

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**A/N: Finally, it has been rewritten. I'll try to upload the next chapter really soon because this took such a long time. **

**And remember, reviews make authors happy. (So review, damn you! - haha!) **


	3. I Am What I Am

**Obtaining Your One True Love**

**A/N: First of all, just to make it easier for everyone, including myself, when I use the following signs, just watch out:**

**X : I'm calling the characters by their original name regardless of whose body their in. (example, Naruto is called Naruto even though he is Sasuke)**

**// : I'm calling the characters by whose body their in. (example, Naruto is called Sasuke because he is Sasuke)**

**Naruto = Sasuke  
Sasuke = Naruto  
Shikamaru = Neji  
Neji = Shikamaru**

**Anyway, thank you, Angelic Sakura Blossom, Isabella Kelly and carolinee458 for reviewing. **

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Chapter 2: I Am What I Am

**X**

Naruto took a deep breath, calming his nerves, and knocked on the door in front of him. Said wooden obstacle opened instantly and the Jinchuriki got pulled inside the mansion before him, the door slamming close behind, falling in the lock.

"What are you doing with my body?" Uchiha Sasuke hissed in anger.

"I don't know - honestly, I don't!" Naruto innocently held up his hands when he saw Sasuke's look of disbelief. "I woke up this morning like this! Believe me, I don't like this any more than you do; I miss my body."

"_You _miss _your _body? What about me? I've lost all my athletic prowess and I have to say, I feel extremely uncomfortable without my Sharingan!" Sasuke retaliated.

"Sharingan? I have Sharingan?" Naruto grinned excitedly although he soon stopped when he saw Sasuke's murderous look.

"And if you even _think _of using it, I'll kill you." The Uchiha hissed.

There was a short silence before Naruto grinned, a smile Sasuke returned. This was one of the rare moments in which it seemed everything was back to normal. The truth, however, was far from it: yes, Sasuke had been accepted back into Konoha, but the relationship between him and the Rookie 12 **(1) **never returned to what it had been.

As for his own team, he had only really talked to Naruto. Even though it had started out with a lot of awkwardness, with both males remembering their battle at the Final Valley, things had soon become better. Sasuke hadn't seen his other two team mates, though; he didn't want to see the disappointment in Kakashi's face and Sakura… he just couldn't bare seeing Sakura.

"Okay, so do you have any idea what's happened?" Naruto asked.

"No," Sasuke shook his head. "I think it's best if we look up some body-mind switch Jutsu's. But it could take some time to find the right one."

"Then let's get to it!" Naruto exclaimed, already moving towards the door.

Sasuke hesitated: he hadn't been outside the Uchiha compound since he returned half a year ago. How would the village react? His eyes travelled through the room and rested on Naruto. Sasuke sighed in relief. It wasn't fair, but the Jinchuriki would get all the looks meant for him.

"Yeah, let's go." Sasuke agreed.

The pair exited the mansion and made their way towards the entrance of the compound, which would lead them, straight into the Konoha. The contrast between the two places was incredible: the village was bright and happy and full of people, while the compound was dark and gloomy and deserted.

"Where shall we go first?" Naruto asked brightly.

"_First_? I thought we were going to the Hokage's Mansion to find out about this Jutsu?" Sasuke raised his eyebrows, not liking this.

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, but we should go get something to eat first! To Ichiraku Ramen!"

Before the Uchiha had time to object, his wrist had been grabbed and he had been pulled towards the Jinchuriki's favourite place in the village. Teuchi noted them instantly and turned to Sasuke, completely ignoring Naruto.

"Ah, long time no see! What can I get you? We've got a special offer today, if you buy one you can-"

"I'll just take some water." Sasuke stated in boredom.

There was a silence before Teuchi slowly nodded and turned to Naruto, his eyes narrowing in disapproval. Said male seemed oblivious and grinned.

"I'll take you up on that offer! I'll have some Miso Ramen." The Jinchuriki said and Teuchi nodded again, turning his back on the two boys as he started working on the dish, muttering something under his breath.

Naruto turned to Sasuke and was about to say something when a third person entered the shop. Ino froze when she saw the raven, but held her head high and turned to the blond. After all, she had come to find Naruto in the first place, not get distracted by her ex-crush.

"Naruto," She grinned, looking at Sasuke. "Sakura asked me to remind you of the team-meeting which is in thirty minutes." She turned to Naruto and her voice went cold. "What about you, Sasuke, are you coming?"

Naruto nodded slowly. "Um, yeah, sure."

Ino gave him a quick dip of the head and exited the building again, satisfied her heart was beating at its regular pace. Back inside, Naruto stared at Sasuke, both of them thinking the same thing. But before they had a chance to speak their thoughts, a bowl of ramen was rudely placed in front of Naruto.

He ate in silence.

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**//**

Sakura kept her emotions carefully under control when she saw Naruto and Sasuke enter the training ground. She noticed Kakashi seemed surprised, too, but didn't bother calling on it. She took her leather gloves out of her bag and concentrated on putting them on just the right way.

"It's good to see you again, Sasuke," Kakashi stated, looking at the raven.

"Hn. I need to keep up my training."

Sakura looked up when she heard Sasuke speak and thought she saw Naruto glare at his team-mate, although she didn't know why. She turned to the Uchiha and tried to keep her smile genuine as she greeted him, not mentioning this morning.

"Alright, now you're all here, let's review our future missions and training routine. Since you've missed all our earlier meetings, Sasuke, let me just give you a run-down. We train every other day at this spot for two hours and whenever we complete a mission we review it in the park, understood?" Kakashi explained.

"Hn." Sasuke simply replied, causing Naruto to roll his eyes at him.

"Alright, team." Kakashi continued. "We have a mission scheduled next week to escort someone to the Land of Lightning; the Village Hidden in the Clouds, to be precise. As for our training program… that will remain the same."

Sakura nodded, speaking up. "Kakashi-sensei, can we train today instead of tomorrow?"

Kakashi turned to the two boys. "Are you two alright with that?"

"Hn. Sure, whatever." Sasuke folded his arms.

"Oh, yes! Bring it on, dattebayo!" **(2) **Naruto threw his arms behind his head.

Their sensei looked at them in confusion and Sakura glared at them in annoyance. She hated the fact that they were trying to act all cool, forgetting her completely. But her mood brightened a bit when she saw them glaring at each other.

Naruto glanced meaningfully at Sasuke. "Kakashi, can we just have a short word before training? … Dattebayo!"

Sasuke bit down on his bottom lip in anger before turning around and walking to the other end of the training ground, Naruto following close behind. Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow, but Sakura just shook her head.

-- With Naruto and Sasuke --

**X**

"What was that all about? I don't say 'hn' _all _the time!" Sasuke folded his arms in annoyance and glared at the Jinchuriki.

"Well, I don't say 'dattebayo' all the time. Honestly, you make it almost sound annoying." Naruto retaliated. "Besides, you _do _say 'hn' a lot and I have to make myself sound believable"

"I can say the same about you." Sasuke stated. "But anyway, what are we going to do about the training. We have to make our abilities seem believable. In other words, since I'm better than you, I'll have to lose."

Naruto gasped. "Don't be so cocky! I improved a lot while you were gone and you might not be the best anymore. But since you're so insistent, I'll defeat you, no problem."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Let's just get started."

The Jinchuriki nodded and they both returned to Kakashi and Sakura, who were talking about some Genjutsu strategy she wanted to try out. Their sensei nodded when the males returned and turned to the three of them.

"Alright, we'll have a quick-fire training round. We'll start with Sasuke vs. Naruto and when two minutes have passed Sakura will switch with Naruto. After another two minutes, Naruto will replace Sasuke. And then Sasuke will take Sakura's place to start the sequence over again." Kakashi explained.

The three nodded as their sensei took out a familiar timer and placed it on a familiar tree trunk. Naruto cast a meaningful glance at Sasuke, who nodded and took his position in the middle of the training field with the other opposite him.

"Alright, and start!"

Sakura looked on expectantly as the two rivals ran towards each other, taking out a kunai and clashing in mid-air. Sasuke knew he could easily overpower the other; even without his own strength he still had the better technique. Knowing he had to make the battle believable, he pushed forward with the knife before ducking and kicking Naruto's legs from under him.

Naruto slammed into the ground but quickly rolled over before Sasuke could reach him again. He jumped back up and, getting caught in the excitement of the fight, made his favourite hand sign.

Sasuke quickly shook his head and grabbed his wrist, staring into Naruto's eyes until he realised what he was about to do.

The Uchiha sighed in relief and smirked, throwing the other into the ground again. Naruto cursed in disbelief, annoyed at the fact that even when he had attained Sasuke's strength, he could still not beat him.

"One minute," Kakashi called.

Naruto knew he could do almost nothing except Taijutsu during this battle, and so he sprung up and punched Sasuke's abdomen. The Uchiha gasped in pain and, even though he could easily continue, sank to his knees to continue the act.

"Alright, time's up. It'll be Sasuke vs. Sakura now!"

-- One Minute Earlier, with Sakura --

**//**

Sakura looked in pity at Naruto, her earlier act of not caring faltering. She couldn't believe that even after all these years of hard training, Sasuke was still superior to him. Almost as if it was all for nothing…

She was surprised too, however. She wondered why the two only seemed to use Taijutsu instead of the Rasengan and Chidori. And she could've sworn that when Sasuke tried to use a Jutsu a few minutes ago, Naruto had stopped him.

Sakura clenched her fists; she was going to show Sasuke she was not the weak little girl she used to be! Not the lovesick fan girl… not the useless burden!

"Alright, time's up. It'll be Sasuke vs. Sakura now!"

Sakura's head snapped up - she had completely lost track of time. She nodded her head in determination and walked towards the field, but before she started the fight she turned to Naruto who was on his knees.

"Are you alright, Naruto-kun?"

He slowly nodded and Sakura lowered to her knees before him, placing her hands on his chest. She smiled at him and after a few seconds Naruto returned it. The glow of the green healing light illuminated their faces like some mystical torch. Their eyes locked and for a short moment Sakura felt she was alone with him on the world.

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**(1) - I know it's the Rookie 9! But I call them the Rookie 12 to include Team Guy. **

**(2) - For those who don't know, 'dattebayo' means 'believe it'. **

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**A/N: I really hope all the X's and //'s weren't too confusing because I tried my best to make it all understandable. **

**Reviews make authors happy and don't you forget it!**

**And one last note, have you read the latest manga chapter! Sasuke killed Karin! Can you believe it!? **


	4. All Out Of Love

**Obtaining Your One True Love**

**A/N: Right, after many, many tries I finally managed to write that first scene. And I'm still not pleased with it because Temari is too OOC. Gomen Nasai! Well, prepare for a lot of sadness in this chapter because that is what happens when I listen to sad songs like 'Right Here Waiting For You' by John Barrowman while writing this.**

**Thank you, ByakuganLove, Angelic Sakura Blossom, Twisted Musalih and BrightAngel13 for reviewing. It means so much to me!  
And, of course, thank you to the people who either favourited or subscribed or read the story.**

**Oh, and remember the signs: **

**X: I'm calling the characters by their original name regardless of whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Naruto even though he is in Sasuke)**

**//: I'm calling the characters by whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Sasuke because he is Sasuke)**

**Naruto = Sasuke  
Sasuke = Naruto  
Shikamaru = Neji  
Neji = Shikamaru**

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Chapter 3: All Out Of Love

-- With Shikamaru --

**X**

Shikamaru nervously swallowed when he saw Temari standing in front of the gates of Konohagakure, trying to ignore the angry fluttering in the pit of his stomach. He didn't know why he was feeling so nervous all of a sudden; he _never _felt nervous and had never been nervous, not even when he had talked to his blond angel before.

"Oh, this is so troublesome," He muttered, stepping towards the female Ninja.

"Hey," She nodded at him, folding her arms and looking around as if expecting someone. This surprised Shikamaru because he had asked her to come here a few days ago… alone.

"Right, let me start off by saying I'm not very good at these things. But that doesn't matter, because my feelings are real enough. I love you, Temari. It's as simple as that. I've loved you ever since I first laid eyes on you. I would give my heart, my soul, my mind and my body just to be with you. So, please, accept this." Shikamaru held out the gladiolus and nervously waited.

"I…" She stared at him. "I can't… Oh my god, I'm so sorry! But I love only one person and that's not you. I'm in love with Nara Shikamaru. I'm sorry, Neji-san."

"What…?" Shikamaru's eyes widened.

"I'm sorry." Temari repeated, walking back into the village with a slight quickening of her steps.

Shikamaru remained in the same place; he unable to move because of the mixed emotions he was feeling. First there was relief, relief at finally declaring his love. Then there was hurt because Temari had rejected him, but also happiness because she had declared her own love for him. And finally there was confusion, confusion at being called Neji.

'_Temari-san is probably ill or something. Or maybe this is some kind of weird test that girls have invented to see if you really love them. Oh, man, this is so troublesome.'_

"I'm all out of love…" Shikamaru whispered, lifting his face skywards.

He ignored the stinging in the corners of his eyes and started moving back into the village centre, moving without real purpose. The blur of emotions was finally untangling and the hurt was starting to become the prominent one. It felt like his heart had been ripped out. He had just laid open his soul and she had rejected him!

"Hey, Neji-kun!"

Shikamaru's head snapped round and he came face-to-face with TenTen, the female member of Team Gai. There was a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips, but something seemed to be holding back the real happiness within her.

Shikamaru sighed in annoyance, not ready to deal with people. "What do you want?"

"I…" She looked down, obviously hurt, unable to make eye contact. "I just wanted to say 'hi', Neji-kun. But if you don't want me to I could just go and-"

"Why does everyone keep calling me that!?" Shikamaru yelled, finally losing it. "If this is some kind of sick joke, then stop it! I just confessed my love to the girl of my dreams and she rejected me all because of this trick!"

TenTen clenched her fists in anger and hurt. Ino had been right after all: Hyuga Neji was going out with Sabaku Temari.

'_In that case: fine. I don't need him! Besides, the True Love Jutsu said we'd have to go through hardships before obtaining our one true love. Well, this is the hardship… so let's find my other half.' _

She glared at the male opposite her. "I'll see you later, Neji." She turned to go but then spun round again. "Oh, and you and Temari… it doesn't work."

Shikamaru stared at her as she walked away in shock. Did that just really happen? TenTen was not the kind of person who would insult someone like that, so what was going on? If this really was a joke, they were sure acting the part.

Shikamaru sighed: this wasn't working. He would go home, get his thoughts together, sleep, wake up tomorrow and act like everything was normal. He would try and forget about Temari and see what would happen.

-- With Team Kakashi --

**X**

"Thank you, Sakura-chan," Sasuke whispered when the cherry blossom stood back up. For the first time since this body-switch started he actually felt glad about it. He could openly show affection for Sakura without seeming weak because that's what Naruto did. The only problem was that she thought he was the blonde.

Meanwhile, Naruto looked on in anger and jealousy as Sakura glared at him while being so kind to Sasuke. It was exactly the same as all those years ago: she completely ignored him - hated him - and adored that teme.

"Get ready, Sasuke-_kun_," Sakura clenched her fists, the -kun part smothered in sarcasm.

Naruto grinned when he remember he was Sasuke and Sasuke was him. With that being the case, it meant the roles had literally been reversed; she liked him and hated Sasuke.

"Alright, you two, start!" Kakashi shouted as he turned on the timer.

Naruto's eyes widened in fear as he remembered he was supposed to _fight _Sakura without using a single one of his Jutsu's. Sakura smirked slightly as she dashed forwards, swirling Chakra gathering around her fist with a light blue glow. Naruto decided to use his newly acquired speed for the best and dodged the attack by sidestepping to the left. A second and third punch quickly followed but he managed to avoid these, too.

Sakura bit down on her bottom lip in anger. "Odori Ouka no Jutsu!" **(1)**

Standing silently on the sideline, Sasuke stared in shockas twirling cherry blossoms rained down from the sky around the two fighting shinobi. Sakura moved her hands towards Naruto and the flowers changed direction to shoot towards him. There was no way he could have dodged the storm of blossoms headed towards since they came from every possible direction and when they were seconds away from him they changed to sharp pink shuriken.

Naruto gasped in pain when he got hit by one of Sakura's favourite Jutsu's, one she had developed herself like almost all her attacks. It was one of her favourite hobbies and she could often be found on the training field practising.

'_I bet you weren't expecting that, huh, Sasuke? Now, knowing you, you will activate your Sharingan to evaluate these unknown Jutsu's… and when you do…' _Sakura chuckled, carefully watching his eyes.

She gasped when instead of doing what she had expected her opponent lunged forwards and grabbed her wrist, using her surprise to his advantage.

"Hana Kaze no Jutsu!" **(2) **Sakura whispered, looking directly into his eyes. A light breeze rushed through the grass but soon turned stronger and stronger as they continued to look at each other.

Naruto was familiar with this Jutsu; he had seen it used many times against enemies or during training sessions like this one, but he had never been a victim of it. It was a test to see who had the most endurance: the strength of the wind would continue to grow unabated as long as the held eye contact. As soon as one looked away, the wind would turn on that person. The thing was, though, that the wind was an illusion and visible only to the people inside the Jutsu. But as soon as the contact was broken, the illusion would turn to reality.

Naruto knew the only way to successfully live through this Jutsu was to break eye contact as soon as it had started so the attack would be weak and ineffective. Unfortunately, they had passed that stage already. And beating Sakura at endurance… okay, that was almost impossible.

"Alright, two minutes are over! Naruto vs. Sakura, please!" Kakashi called.

"What!?" Sakura shouted, turning towards her sensei in shock.

As soon as she broke her own Jutsu, the wind - now almost level to a small storm - turned on Sakura and slammed her into the ground. She slowly sat up and looked into Naruto's now onyx eyes as she placed her hand on her cheek, healing the cut that had appeared there.

"I win…" Naruto folded his arms. "Hn." He quickly added.

"The match was already over, baka," She spitefully hissed.

Sakura lithely flipped into a standing position and glared at Naruto before turning to Sasuke who was still standing in shock at the sidelines. "Come on, Naruto, let's have a fun and _fair _fight between the two of us."

She held out her hand and Sasuke took it, not sure how to react. He was not used to having someone show affection to him in a non fan-girl kind of way. He could always act like Naruto and act like that back… that would probably be the best decision since he _was _Naruto at the moment.

He smiled back at Sakura and the pair had a simple but fun match that ended in a draw.

* * *

**//**

Sakura sat next to Naruto on the head of the Second Hokage, looking down at the village beneath her and getting lost in the wonderful view. She glanced at the blonde beside her and tried to get her feelings ordered.

She was feeling love, which was obvious. But she didn't know her reasons for it. All her life, she had loved Sasuke, but after he had left three years ago she had started seeing how much stronger and mature Naruto had become. And during their search for Sasuke with Sai, she had almost confessed her love, too.

But that love had completely disappeared after they had found Sasuke during that same mission and, as much as she hated to admit it, she had loathed Naruto for a few seconds then. And when the Fourth Great Ninja War started, and she had fought beside him, all her feelings had turned to respect and friendship.

So why was she feeling love now? Was she just seeing Naruto as a replacement for Sasuke? Or was she jealous of his relationship with the Uchiha and was she trying to break it by flirting with the blonde.

"Naruto-kun… are you, you know… going out with Sasuke?"

"What!?" He shouted before chuckling, wondering where this had come from. "Why do you think that?"

"Well, this morning… I went to give you the scroll about the team-meeting but Sasuke opened the door and he was wearing _your _pyjamas!" Sakura explained, blushing slightly as she waited for the answer.

"Oh, that…" Naruto whispered, not knowing what she was on about. He supposed Sakura had seen the real Naruto this morning looking like Sasuke. "Um… we were just having a sleepover, dattebayo! Believe me, I would never get in a relationship with that teme. Besides, I'm straight."

Sakura smiled in relief and her eyes widened when Naruto wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close. They looked up at the sunset together and the cherry blossom couldn't help wondering what it would be like if they got together. Because she finally realised what her heart had been denying…

"I love you, Naruto-kun…"

The blonde looked down at her in shock and love and pain and happiness. Sakura had just confessed her love to him, but he wasn't _him_. He was Sasuke, he only looked like Naruto and therefore Sakura didn't love him. In fact, she hated him.

"I… Sakura-chan… I…" He couldn't do this. "I don't love you."

He stood up and released her, jumping down from the Hokage monument until he was down in the village. The words reverberated through his body, slowly killing him on the inside; just speaking them hurt him because it wasn't the truth. It took all his self-control to not look back, run towards her and kiss her, proclaiming his love.

Sakura stared at his retreating back, feeling tears well up in her eyes. She blinked and the first drops of water rolled down her cheeks, landing on the stone beneath her. How much hurt and pain did she have to go through? First Sasuke, now Naruto… what had she done to deserve this?

She clenched her fists. "I'm all out of love."

* * *

**(1) - This is not a real Jutsu! Translated, it means 'Dancing Blossom Jutsu'.**

**(2) - This is not a real Jutsu! Translated, it means 'Flower Wind Jutsu'.**

**

* * *

**

**A/N: Right, did anyone read the manga chapter last week? Sasuke almost killed Sakura! And Sakura almost killed Karin (yeah, turns out she wasn't dead)! Thank God we have Kakashi, our future Hokage. **


	5. Time After Time

**Obtaining Your One True Love**

**A/N: Interlude chapter. It has to be done guys, sorry.**

**Thanks to Aslickain Kiant, tigers-and-dragons, LadyMartel4000, Angelic Sakura Blossom, Miki-chann, angel1897, ByakuganLove, Twisted Musalih, reedoh and BrightAngel13 for reviewing. I don't think I've ever had so much reviews for one chapter! Arigato, guys! And, of course, to everyone who favourited or subscribed! :)**

**As always, remember the signs:**

**X: I'm calling the characters by their original name regardless of whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Naruto even though he is in Sasuke)**

**//: I'm calling the characters by whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Sasuke because he is Sasuke)**

**Naruto = Sasuke  
Sasuke = Naruto  
Shikamaru = Neji  
Neji = Shikamaru**

**Warning: Spoilers for those who are not up to date with the manga!**

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* * *

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Chapter 4: Time After Time

"Alright, results… anyone?" Ino clasped her hands together and looked at each of her friends in turn, trying to make eye contact with them all, even though Hinata was the only one not to avoid it.

The four girls were seated in Ino's rooms; Ino herself was on the bed, Hinata was sitting on the chair and the two others were lying on the fluffy pink carpet in front of the middle of the room. Sakura and TenTen were unusually quiet and kept glancing down at the floor every so often, but both Hinata and Ino were actually quite happy.

"Nothing's happened to me that would make me doubt my love for Kiba-kun," Hinata smiled and remembered the date they had yesterday.

"Ha, just you wait!" Sakura murmured, even though everyone could clearly hear her words. When she realised she was being stared at, the cherry blossom blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, I'm sorry, Hinata-chan! I didn't think! I guess I'm just jealous because your love life is going so well; you're the only one who has the True Love Jutsu working in her favour…" She trailed off and bitterly stared at the ground.

"What happened?" Ino gently asked, worrying about her friend. Was it Sasuke again? If it was, she was going to kill that jerk for making her so sad!

Sakura shook her head, surprising everyone else in the room. "It's Naruto… After the team meeting, training actually, we went to the Hokage Statues and we had such a great time together. I declared my love for him. And he rejected me."

TenTen looked up. "I'm so sorry, Sakura-chan… How did that team meeting go, anyway? Did you ask Sasuke and Naruto-kun about their relationship?"

Sakura chuckled slightly. "They are most definitely not together."

There was a short silence before everyone laughed, even the two feeling down, as they imagined the prospect of Naruto and Sasuke going out. How could they have ever thought that? Ah, well, love made you do strange things.

"But, Sakura," Ino started, getting back to the earlier topic. "I thought you loved Sasuke… what's all this about Naruto?"

"Well… Okay, at first I liked Sasuke, but more in the crazy fan-girl kind of way, like we all did. I didn't know who he was as a person. On the other hand, I hated Naruto-kun because he was just… idiotic and immature. But then after Sasuke left and we started training and searching for him together, I started seeing him in a different light. And then we finally found him… and all my past feelings for Sasuke resurfaced again and I felt angry at Naruto for letting him go…"

She paused, looking around the room as she tried to collect her thoughts, putting her feelings into words.

Sakura continued. "And now he's finally back and I don't know what to do. I expected everything to be same… but none of us can truly let go of the past. It seems like we're even more distant to each other than before. As for my feelings, I don't know whom I love. At first I thought it was Sasuke because, for the first time, I think I understood why he wanted vengeance so bad. But then I remembered that he was the cause for ruining all the friendships I had ever made… I'm so confused…"

Ino jumped up. "I have an idea! You know, to figure out who you love!" She grinned in a way that usually meant something bad was going to happen. "I used to do this all the time when I was struggling between who I loved. Sakura, stand up!"

The cherry blossom nervously did what she was told, not liking this at all. Ino's schemes were usually a little - no, _very_ - crazy.

"Alright, Sakura, close your eyes." Ino ordered, sighing when there wasn't an instant reaction. "Sakura-chan, you have to believe in it for it to work! Alright, now listen and imagine… You are standing on a high cliff with no safe way off it. In front of you there's another cliff and you _have _to get there because if you do, everything will be alright. There's a thin wooden plank connecting the two cliffs. Can you see it?"

Sakura nodded, not sure where this was going and the other two girls raised their eyebrows at each other.

"You start walking along the plank, one step at a time. One wrong move and you fall. You look down beneath you and see sharp rocks. You turn to your right and see Uzumaki Naruto. You turn to the left and see Uchiha Sasuke. You keep walking. Suddenly, the wind starts blowing. You're losing your balance and you're falling!"

"Sasuke!!" Sakura screamed at the top of her lungs.

The second she crashed onto the floor her eyes snapped open and she looked around in a daze, forgetting where she was for a minute. When she registered the forms of her friends, she realised she was _not _walking above deadly rocks, but was, in fact, in Ino's room.

"You love Sasuke." Ino simply said.

"Right…" Sakura whispered as she leaned against the bed. Embarrassment coursed through her body when she remembered yesterday and how stupid she acted. Especially since it turned out she didn't even love the guy! But then, what was the feeling she had experienced with Naruto? Because it sure felt like love.

TenTen shifted her position and Ino instantly turned her attention to the weapon specialist. "It's your turn now - how's Neji?"

TenTen looked up in anger. "Yesterday I saw Neji and I only said 'hi' to him, but he instantly rounded on me and just started screaming. He told me he was angry because Temari had rejected him, he thought a trick was being played on him and because everyone called him 'Neji'? I mean… what?"

"I don't think the True Love Jutsu is working… I mean, it's been four days and nothing has happened for me and Ino so far. And you two only experience bad luck in your love life. Either we've done something wrong or it just doesn't work." Hinata voiced her opinion, sliding down the chair and sitting on the carpet.

"Or… it's making us see that those we _thought_ we loved weren't actually our true loves. For example, Sakura thought she loved Naruto, but it turns out she really loves Sasuke! And you, TenTen, don't really love Neji-kun but someone else. As for us, we haven't experienced any bad love because we _do _know our true loves!" Ino stated.

* * *

**X**

"Hey, Neji," Naruto grinned as he opened the door. He paused for a second before adding 'Hn.' to the end of his sentence, making the other eye him in confusion.

Shikamaru sighed as yet another person called him Neji. But then again, he could understand why. Ever since he came home yesterday he had discovered the reason behind the weird acting of everyone around him. And it had definitely not been a trick by the girls or some initiation test before you could date one.

_Shikamaru tiredly opened the door to his apartment, mentally exhausted by the events of that day. He looked around the hallway, glad he had a place of his own so he wouldn't have to explain his behaviour to his parents. After he had become a Chunin, his parents had bought this small apartment for him in the centre of the village and he was still grateful to them._

_The apartment consisted of one floor located above one of the shops with a bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen, a hallway and a living room. It was not particularly big but it was enough for him. _

_Shikamaru entered his bedroom and instantly let himself fall down on his bed. He rolled onto his back and absentmindedly turned his head to the left, staring at the wall. Everything that had happened washed over him and he sighed, somehow not being able to feel the sadness. _

_Suddenly his eyes widened and he sat up. He blinked._

"_What the…?" Shikamaru whispered and he slowly stood up and walked towards the wall he had been staring at. Or more precisely, the _mirror_._

_He pressed his fingertips against the smooth glass; it felt cold against his skin. The reflection mirrored his action. Shikamaru tiled his head to the side, wondering if this was some kind of Genjutsu. He absentmindedly lifted his free hand to the back of his head to move it through his hair, a tick he had when he was confused._

_Shikamaru froze and his hand dropped uselessly to his side. His hair was much longer than he was used to and was straight instead of spiky. This could only mean one thing: the reflection was not a Genjutsu… it reflected the truth! _

_He was Hyuga Neji! _

_Anger brushed his nervous system when he remembered how Temari had rejected him. Her words reverberated inside of him. She loved Nara Shikamaru… she loved him and she had confessed it to him. But she didn't realise it had been him and now they were both caught in a paradox of love._

"_Temari-chama…" _**(1)**

_Shikamaru knew there was just one person he could talk to about this now. He would go to Naruto and see what his opinion was of this predicament. After that he would go to Tsunade and tell her about this so she could change him back! _

"I'm not… Ah, whatever, it's too troublesome to explain it to you. Is Naruto-kun there?" Shikamaru asked, not fazed by the fact Uchiha Sasuke had answered the door.

Naruto nodded and opened the door further to let his friend in, leading him to Sasuke who sitting on the couch in the living room. Naruto took his place beside him and hoped Shikamaru was going to talk about something the Uchiha knew about. They had been discussing ways to change back before he had come in.

"Alright, Naruto, you're probably not going to believe me, but every word of what I'm about to say is true," He waited until the other had nodded before continuing. "I'm Nara Shikamaru and _not _Hyuga Neji. I looked in the mirror and I found myself like this! I haven't been to see Neji-kun yet and see what he's like but I just wanted your opinion first."

Naruto glanced at Sasuke, who gave a tiny nod.

The Jinchuriki grinned. "Join the club, Shikamaru!"

"Finally I can drop the act… hn." Sasuke smirked slightly.

"I told you! You _do _say 'hn' a lot!" Naruto pointed at the other accusingly and then grinned triumphantly.

"That was on purpose, dobe," Sasuke rolled his eyes.

Shikamaru looked on in confusion as the two shinobi on the couch sat there glaring at each other, acting like each other. And what had Naruto meant with 'join the club'? Possibility's shot through his head and it only took a few seconds for Shikamaru to know the answer to that question.

He held up his hands to silence them. "Guys, can you stop it, please?"

Naruto grinned apologetically. "Sorry, Shikamaru… Anyway, I'm not Sasuke and the guy sitting next to me is definitely _not _Naruto. Like with you, our bodies are switched. And we have no idea how to reverse it; we just woke up like this and ever since we've been pretending to be each other."

Shikamaru nodded as his earlier thoughts got confirmed. "I propose we go to Lady Tsunade and explain the whole situation to her. There's no doubt about the fact that she'll have something for us."

Sasuke and Naruto slowly turned towards each other, their eyebrows rising in exasperation as they realised that they had quite possibly wasted two whole days acting like each other. They turned back to Shikamaru with an equally slow pace.

"Good plan, Shikamaru… let's go!" Naruto jumped up, recovering the fastest.

"Yeah, but can we please keep acting like each other until we reach the Hokage Mansion. I don't want Naruto to make a fool out of me." Sasuke looked around the room and Naruto reluctantly nodded, slipping back into 'serious mode'.

The three of them stood up and started making their way to the mansion. Naruto started filling Shikamaru in on everything they had been through the past two days, including they had to imitate each other's battle styles. Shikamaru shook his head in a daze, sympathising with the two shinobi. It must have been hell trying to act like Sasuke… or Naruto.

"And we were allowed to use no Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, just Taijutsu! Otherwise they would have seen through us in a second." Naruto told Shikamaru, glad to finally have someone he could share these things with. Sasuke was useless in that category.

It didn't take long to reach the Hokage Mansion. Even though Danzou had taken her position and had become the Sixth Hokage just before the Fourth Great Ninja War, and Kakashi had become the Seventh Hokage after his death and _during _the war, Tsunade had retaken her position. After she had woken up from her coma, Kakashi had resigned, saying he'd rather be a normal Jounin.

"So, Sasuke, after this whole ordeal has been dealt with… are you going to lock yourself up into the Uchiha Compound again?" Shikamaru asked when Naruto had finished with his story."

Sasuke glared at him. It seemed nobody understood the fact that he'd rather be alone. He had killed the Sixth Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves and then almost killed Karin, Sakura, Naruto _and _Kakashi, the Seventh Hokage. The only reason he stopped was because of Naruto and the words he had spoken to him. Naruto was the only one who truly accepted him back; Sakura hated him, Kakashi treated him like he was nothing and the rest of the village despised him.

"I'll see…" Sasuke whispered, thrusting his hands in the pockets of his orange tracksuit: he and Naruto had also swapped clothes.

The three shinobi entered the mansion and were instantly allowed into the Hokage's room, where Tsunade sat at her desk. The age Genjutsu had been recast and she looked the same as ever, complete with her green robe.

"Shikamaru-kun, Naruto-kun and… Sasuke-kun. Well, it's certainly a surprise to see you." Tsunade quickly collected herself as she looked at Naruto, who she thought to be the Uchiha.

"We have a problem, baa-chan," Naruto decided to start the conversation since the attention was on him anyway. He also decided to drop the act since he was going to spill the secret anyway. "I'm not Sa-" His voice broke, cutting him off.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "What he's trying to say is that he's not Sa-" The same happened to him. "Alright, I am not-" He tried again. "Our bodies are-"

Tsunade raised her eyebrows and turned to Sasuke, who she thought to be Naruto. "Can you shed some light on this, Naruto-kun?"

"We're not who you think we are," Sasuke folded his arms. "I'm Sa-" He growled in annoyance when the exact same happened to him. He turned to the others. "It seems we can't voice the problem."

* * *

**(1) - Chama is a combination of -chan and -sama, meaning it's both affectionate and respectful.**

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**A/N: OMG, did anyone read the last two manga chapters! Team 7 has been reunited once again and Naruto and Sasuke are charging towards each other with Rasengan and Chidori... hmm, what does that remind me of? Final Valley anyone? :)**

**Anyway, please review and give me some constructive criticism.**


	6. Find A Way

_**Obtaining Your One True Love**_

**A/N: I'm alive. OMG, I am so sorry, guys! I cannot believe I neglected a story this long. Sorry, sorry, sorry... please forgive me! But this last year has been so busy and combined with losing inspiration and getting into other anime, it was kind of hard to continue.**

**Note: please read the A/N at the end. It's really important!**

**Thank you: piggy luver, Rukia635241, raven rose 101, LadyMartel4000, Aslickain Kiant, tigers-and-dragons, Cherry Blossoms, Twisted Musalih, Riikani, sweetclementines, BrightAngel3 and MyAmaranthGrin for reviewing and for sticking with this story. Arigato, you guys! :)**

**And, of course, thank you to those who favourited or subscribed to the story.  
**

**As always, remember the signs:**

**X: I'm calling the characters by their original name regardless of whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Naruto even though he is in Sasuke)**

**/: I'm calling the characters by whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Sasuke because he is Sasuke)**

**Naruto = Sasuke  
Sasuke = Naruto  
Shikamaru = Neji  
Neji = Shikamaru**

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**Chapter 5: Find A Way 

**X**

"Okay, so what are we going to do?" Sasuke looked around the room.

"I don't know!" Naruto threw his arms up in exasperation.

"Man, this is so troublesome…" Shikamaru whispered from his position on the couch.

The three males had returned to the Uchiha mansion - regarding it as their meeting place - after the embarrassing scene at Tsunade's office. Realising that none of them could talk about what was going one, except to one another, they had just stood there in perplexed silence while Tsunade looked at them as if they were crazy.

"I just realised something..." Naruto whispered, looking up to meet everyone's eyes separately.

"What is it, dobe?" Sasuke cocked his head to the side.

The blonde ignored the name; he knew it wasn't meant as an insult. "Well, it's clear that we've all swapped bodies somehow, right?" He paused to wait for confirmation. "Well, okay... but then... where is Shikamaru's body? I mean, my body is here and Sasuke's body is here... and-"

"Neji's body is here." Sasuke finished.

Naruto nodded and Shikamaru turned thoughtful. It was obvious that Sasuke now had Naruto's body and Naruto had Sasuke's body... and he had Neji's body. So... how had his body?

"Neji must be in my body." Shikamaru concluded. But then he had a thought of doubt. It had already been a few days since they had all woken up like this. If it was true that Neji Hyuga was also affected, then he must have realised it by now. After all, with everyone calling you someone else, along with your reflection actually _being _someone else, it was hard not to find out. So then, why hadn't Neji come find one of them yet?

"We should just go there," Naruto stated, looking at the others.

"Hn. I agree." Sasuke nodded.

"Yeah..." Shikamaru whispered.

And just like they had done earlier that day, the three males stood up and left the mansion, making their way to the main town. They walked mostly in silence again. At the moment, none of them really felt like talking. All of them were too busy with their own thoughts.

The Hyuga compound was not cut off from the village like with the Uchiha's, but it was still located near the edge. This was for a variety of reasons: it was easier this way to keep a clear 'line' between the two, but most importantly, the Hyuga's had chosen for this set-up so they could personally keep their main family safe.

"We're here." Naruto said, quite unnecessarily.

There was a short silence in which nobody moved. Sasuke eventually sighed, rolling his eyes, and knocked on the door, waiting patiently.

It didn't take long.

"Yeah...?" The timid voice of Hinata asked. Her face lit up, however, when she saw who she was facing. "Oh hey, Neji-san! And Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun!"

"Hey, Hinata-chan," Sasuke smiled brightly, keeping his Naruto-act up. "Is Shikamaru in?"

"Shikamaru-kun...?" The Hyuga girl shook her head in confusion. "No, I'm sorry."

Sasuke cursed inwardly. "Ah... okay. Um... do you know where he might be, then?"

She shook her head again and apologised. "I'm sorry, I have no idea. Why don't you try Ino?"

After the four of them said their goodbyes, Hinata closed the door again. Sasuke turned towards the other two, his eyes clearly saying, "what now?". Shikamaru sighed in exasperation, just realising it was pretty stupid to go find Neji, who was Shikamaru to the world, in the _Hyuga Compound_.

"Where shall we go now?" Naruto moaned in annoyance.

"Let's just go find his - I mean your - team-mates," The Uchiha offered, glancing at Shikamaru, who nodded in agreement.

- A LOT Of Time Passes -

**X**

Shikamaru, Naruto and Sasuke slowly shuffled towards the Uchiha mansion. Even Naruto, now with Uchiha strength and endurance, was completely worn out. The three of them had been walking through the village all day, seeing as the sky was now tinted with a hint of orange.

However, there had been no sign of Neji anywhere and they had eventually given up, deciding it would be best to continue the next day.

"Ah, there you are." Someone said.

Shikamaru looked up and froze.

This was officially the weirdest thing he'd seen in his entire life. He know knew how Naruto and Sasuke felt every time they looked at each other. Because there, in front of him, stood another Nara Shikamaru.

"N-Neji!" Naruto gasped. "Where the hell were you all day!"

"I've been visiting Shikamaru's house, but there was no one there, Sasuke-kun," Neji stated, a hint of coldness in his voice. He was one of the people who had not quite forgiven him yet. He then turned to Shikamaru. "I think you know why I'm here."

"Yeah... man, this is all so troublesome."

The four of them went inside the Uchiha Mansion, going into the living room and sitting down somewhere. Shikamaru took the couch from before, while Sasuke and Naruto both opted for a random chair. Neji remained standing for the time being.

"Could we do this privately, please?" Neji asked.

"Don't worry, Neji," Naruto grinned. "We're all in the same situation."

"Wait... so you mean you're not Sasuke?" He looked back and forth between the boys. "You're Naruto, then, right?"

The raven and the blonde both nodded, glad they didn't have to go and explain everything.

"Right, so does anyone know how this actually happened?" Neji queried.

"No, we all just woke up in each other's bodies." Sasuke said. "And believe me, I don't like it. I really want my Sharingan back and-" He froze.

"What! What!" Naruto yelled in annoyance.

Sasuke held up a hand, silencing him. He buried his face in his hands and went over the possibility of it succeeding. True, he and Naruto _had _joked about it a few days ago, but it had never occurred to Sasuke that it could actually work. However, was he truly prepared to let someone else us it?

... Yes, he was.

Sasuke sighed. "We should use Sharingan."

There was a short silence while the others took in what he'd just said, which gave Sasuke the opportunity to think about it again. Because he wasn't sure that Naruto would be strong enough to activate a fully-powered bloodline limit that didn't even belong to him.

... Definitely not.

His eyes slid through the room, and settled on Shikamaru.

"And Byakugan, too."

Naruto and Shikamaru looked at each other. "You mean we have to use your kekkei genkai?"

Sasuke nodded. "Since we can't talk to anyone about what's happened, we have no choice but to take care of this ourselves. So the logical thing to do is to start with examining our chakra to search for abnormalities and the like. So... do you agree with this, Neji?"

The Hyuga nodded. "Anything to get my own body back."

"Alright, then it's settled." Sasuke stated.

"Um, yeah, that's great and all. But how do I use the Sharingan, exactly?" Naruto questioned, cocking his head to the side in slight confusion. Before the Uchiha had any time to explain, the blonde had closed his eyes and seemed to be concentrating very deeply. After a few seconds he opened them again, but they were still their usual (well, _usual_?) black.

Sasuke sighed. "Neji, you go explain it to Shikamaru and I'll try and help Naruto."

The boys quickly split up into pairs while the usage of the kekkei genkai was explained. The boys picked it up remarkably fast (two hours), considering they had never had used or would have used a bloodline limit.

"Alright, here goes..." Naruto whispered. "Sharingan!"

His black eyes bled red, with two comma's in them, contrary to the three Sasuke managed to conjure. He looked around the room. "Oh my God! This is _so _awesome!"

Shikamaru rolled his eyes and tried to concentrate. "Byakugan!"

His eyes went completely white, with the veins around them bulging a little. "W-Wow..." He gasped. "This is so weird. How can you even see like this?"

"Alright, try looking at our chakra patterns." Neji ordered.

The two of them did what was asked and combined their bloodline limit to examine the chakra patterns of the other two boys. Not knowing what a normal chakra pattern looked like to Sharingan and Byakugan, they were told to explain everything they saw in as much detail as possible.

"It's light blue... and swirling... it seems to go in the same flow over and over again..."

"Well, that rules out Genjutsu," Sasuke whispered, knowing that if they flow was completely random, you were trapped in an illusion. However, it seemed it was now pretty steady,.

"What else do you see?" Neji pressed.

"Um... it's kinda... ringed in pink... Yeah, definitely pink."

Sasuke and Neji froze, not used to hearing that description. They both had no idea what the colour pink meant for your chakra.

"What does this mean...?" The raven whispered.

"We should go to the Hokage's Mansion and see if we can find any information about chakra colours." Shikamaru, stifling a yawn. "Actually, on second thoughts... let's go tomorrow."

The others nodded in agreement, the events of the day had definitely tired them out and they all needed some well deserved rest. To avoid having to find each other the following day, the four males decided to crash at the Uchiha Mansion, with Naruto claiming the couch.

- The Following Day -

**X**

Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, Nara Shikamaru and Hyuga Neji had just entered the Hokage Mansion. They had all woken up pretty late, collecting their energy for what would probably be a long, _long _day of reading book and studying chakra. Sasuke, Naruto and Shikamaru had been a bit anxious about going in the first place, hoping they wouldn't meet their Hokage, Tsunade, again. They didn't want to see her wary look.

The four males entered the Mansion. The room they were headed to was viewed as the main information source of the village, containing books and scroll on literally _everything_. It was also open to anyone who needed to know something. Scrolls and books could be borrowed by the villagers, as long as they returned them in time. It was all a bit like a library.

"Alright, let's start." Shikamaru stated.

And so they started searching. Sasuke and Neji had piled a large collection of books on one of the tables, sharing any information they deemed interesting, considering they were the two that knew the most about chakra. Shikamaru had claimed the spot under the window, reading his information there. And Naruto was leaning against a bookshelf, skimming through scrolls.

_Chakra Signatures: Colour Index _**(1)**

_There are many different chakra types and each usually has their own colour. In this chapter, we will go over the different colours that a chakra can take on._

_Blue or yellow: this is the stationary chakra colour. Though most people have a light blue chakra, the colour yellow also occurs, though it is very rare. Many people consider the yellow chakra 'wrong', but this is far from true. (chapter 9/yellow chakra signature information)_

_Green: this is the chakra colour used in healing Jutsu's. (chapter 5/healing with chakra)_

_Purple: the chakra takes on this colour when the individual is possessed. However, a chakra can also take on a light purple hint, which means the chakra is impure. (chapter 10/impure chakra)_

_White: the pure chakra colour. Everyone is born with a white chakra, which eventually turns into either blue or yellow, or maybe purple, depending on the individual. It is very rare for someone to keep the white chakra for their whole life, but it is not unheard of._

_(consult chapter 4 for hints of chakra colours)_

Naruto knew he was on the right track here, quickly grabbing the scroll that symbolised the fourth chapter.

_Chakra Colours: Hints_

_Not all chakra's have a definite colour (chapter 5/chakra colour index). Sometimes there are multiple colours, usually when somebody is in a state of confusion or under a Genjutsu, but the chakra can also have a slight hint of another colour. _

_Purple: though it is often believed a purple hint means one is evil or half-possessed, this is actually not true. When a chakra is slightly purple, it means the individual has a very impure chakra at that moment in time._

_Pink: this can mean a variety of different thing, but it is most commonly associated with being in love. It can also mean being filled with happiness, or simply being feeling 'right'. Of course, it can also be a combination of these._

That's where Naruto stopped reading.

"Guys, I've found it." He whispered.

"Really?" The others were on him in a second, anxious to hear the answer.

The blonde held out the scroll, letting the others read it for themselves. He was not quite sure what to make of it; it seemed like a pretty useless answer to him. But then again, he wasn't as smart as the two prodigies and the genius.

"Love, happiness, simply being 'right'..." Neji reread the text. "Well, I'm certainly not one of those things."

"Me neither." The three others whispered.

Sasuke sighed, not knowing what to make of it. "I think this is the closest we're going to get to the answer, so we might as well borrow this scroll and examine it back at the Uchiha Mansion or something..."

"Good idea." Shikamaru nodded.

Within five minutes, the four stood back outside, as clueless as they were before they went in. They slowly started walking back to the Uchiha Mansion, going slower than usual and taking the road through the village for a change. This time, the walk was in complete silence, all of them mulling over the strange text.

"Hey, guys!"

The four looked up to find Hinata grinning at them, Inuzuka Kiba at her side. Neji, Naruto and Sasuke stepped towards the couple, quickly exchanging some words, while Shikamaru held himself back, the text flashing through his mind.

'_I don't know if I'm right about this, but...' _He concentrated. "Byakugan!"

"So, you found Shikamaru-kun, then?" Hinata asked, nodding at Neji.

"Ah, yeah..." Naruto scratched the back of his head nervously, before remembering he was supposed to act like the Uchiha. "Hn."

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

Meanwhile, Shikamaru's white eyes scanned over the chakra signatures of the three males who were making small talk with Hinata and Kiba. When his eyes rested on Naruto, who was in a conversation with the Hyuga girl, he gasped, the Byakugan disappearing due to the lapse in concentration.

Naruto's chakra signature... had been completely pink.

"Guys, we _need_ to go!" He urgently told the other three males, stepping towards them.

"What's wrong, Neji-san?" Hinata asked, her face filled with worry for her cousin.

Shikamaru smiled reassuringly at the girl, going into Neji-mode. "Don't worry, Hinata-chan. I just realised I had to discuss something with Sasuke-kun, Shikamaru-kun and Naruto-kun. We'll be leaving now. I trust you to take care of my cousin, Kiba-san." He looked at the dog-boy.

"No problem, Neji-san!" Kiba grinned, giving Hinata a kiss on the cheek.

Naruto looked behind him once last time to see Hinata's retreating figure before he followed the other three, who were once again headed to the Uchiha Mansion.

"Guys, I've figured it out!" Shikamaru said as soon as they had entered the building.

"Really! So soon?" Naruto checked, impressed.

Shikamaru nodded. "While you three were talking to Hinata-chan and Kiba-kun, I activated the Byakugan to check your chakra signatures. Naruto." He looked at the blonde boy. "Yours was completely pink the whole time Hinata-chan was near you."

"But what does that imply?" Neji asked in confusion.

"I think I know where this is going..." Sasuke whispered, realising what was going on.

"Pink means something is 'right', either with love or happiness." Shikamaru continued. "So that means Hinata is your 'right' person. Do you guys get it? In order for us to get back in our original bodies, is to get our one true love!"

* * *

**(1) - Basically, I've made this all up. Except for the yellow/blue/green chakra, of course! That's all true!**

**

* * *

****A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'm sorry the girls had almost no scenes (except Hinata, of course), but there will be plenty in the next chapter.**

**Okay, now for the important bit:**

**I have rewritten my story, "Legacy of the Black Blossom" and I have uploaded it as a whole new story, called "Rewrite: Legacy of the Black Blossom". Please go check it out (there are two chaps up, already) if you haven't already. And please all go subscribe to the new version because the old story has been deleted! Sorry, guys, for the inconvenience! **

**Reviews make authors happy (please, please review)  
**


	7. Everybody Loves Me

_**Obtaining Your One True Love**_

**A/N: Sorry for the little late update, but I just finished my exam week and I was very busy with learning this past week. So I had to finish this chapter yesterday and this morning. Anyway, I hope you really enjoy this chapter.**

**Thank you: MyAmaranthGrin, Green-Eyes-Love, Cheetay, Alise-chan, jejeaza, LadyMartel4000 for reviewing. And special thanks to The Descending Raven from Critics United for critiquing my story. I'm really doing my best to improve on the points you've pointed out!  
**

**As always, remember the signs:**

**X: I'm calling the characters by their original name regardless of whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Naruto even though he is in Sasuke)**

**/: I'm calling the characters by whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Sasuke because he is Sasuke)**

**Naruto = Sasuke  
Sasuke = Naruto  
Shikamaru = Neji  
Neji = Shikamaru**

**

* * *

**Chapter 6: Everybody Loves Me

Yamanaka Ino could not resist looking into the mirror one last time before she left her house, which was behind the flower shop. She carefully examined every last bit of her appearance, making sure not even a single hair was out of place. She had to look perfect.

After all, today, she was going to ask Nara Shikamaru, the love of her life, out.

She smiled softly when she thought back to the day her love for him began.

-Flashback-

_Ino wrapped her hands around her body, which was trembling with soundless tears. How could she ever overcome this blow? How could she ever move forward from this? What was the point of life when Uchiha Sasuke had left? What if he never came back? _

_The questions flashed through her mind, filling every single thought she had. She could not escape it, escape the horrible sadness that was threatening to eat her alive. She would do anything if it meant seeing him anyone… Uchiha Sasuke._

"_Ino…" _

_She almost didn't hear the voice call out her name. But she did hear the softness and kindness in it and… was that love she heard? No, it couldn't be. Sasuke's defection was making her mad, making her hear things that she couldn't hear. _

"_Ino… are you alright?" _

_She shook her head, tears streaming down her face, dripping onto the covers of her bed, on which she was sitting. She finally turned around, drawn by the kindness, and came face to face with Nara Shikamaru, her team mate. Her eyes widened in surprise; she had not expected him of all people to come to her. True, they didn't hate each other anymore, but their relationship was nothing more than mutual respect. _

"_Shikamaru…" she whispered__. _

_Without any invitation, he sat down next to her on the bed. Instinctively, Ino wrapped her arms tighter around her body, a subconscious sign of putting one's guard up. _

"_How did you get in?" she muttered, her voice thick and raspy. Very unattractive. _

"_Through the front door." He grinned, but it slowly died when there was no reaction. "Your mother let me in. She wanted me to comfort you."_

_Ino let out a bitter laugh. "So you only came because you were asked? I knew it! Everything is too troublesome for you, isn't it?" _

_She knew it was unfair towards him. In truth, she didn't even mean a single word she had just said. But right now, even the smallest thing could send her over the edge. And right now, Ino wanted nothing more than to lash out at everyone and everything. What did it matter if the world hated her?_

_But, surprisingly, Shikamaru didn't seem to mind her comment. "I came because _I _wanted to. Ino… I'm worried about you. You're my team mate and I… care about you."_

_She looked at him and saw the honesty in his brown eyes. He really did care about her. _

"_Ino, please tell me how you feel. I want to help." _

"_You wouldn't understand…" she whispered, not wanting to talk about her feelings._

"_Maybe not." Shikamaru shrugged. "But it's not good to keep everything bottled up inside of you, because then it'll destroy you on the inside. You have to share your sadness, your pain, with someone… Because every time you do, your sadness is halved."_

_Ino's blue eyes widened again and she looked at him in amazement. Who knew that lazy-ass could be so… wise. But then again, he wasn't made Chunin for nothing. _

"_I…" she started. "I miss Sasuke so much, so much… and I just want him back here in the Leaf. I've never told him how much I love him and…"_

_Shikamaru soundlessly listened to Ino talk about her undying love for Sasuke, her wish for him to return. But as she went on, it kept becoming harder and harder to accept what she was saying. When she was done, he turned his whole body to her._

"_Listen, Ino… you don't love Uchiha Sasuke," he declared, slightly aggressive._

"_W-What…?" she stammered. "What are you talking about! I've always loved-"_

"_No." Shikamaru interrupted. "You don't _love _him. You're just infatuated with him, just like every other girl in this village." He saw her disbelieving eyes and sighed. "You're so troublesome. Look, if you really do love him, then tell me this: why? Why would a girl like you - smart, beautiful, funny, kind - love someone like _him_? He's not kind, he's not nice. He doesn't care about any one of you."_

_Ino listened in shock to his words. "You don't know anything about me!"_

"_Then tell me why you love him!" He raised his voice._

_That action was so out of character, that it instantly silenced her, a dumbstruck expression on her face. "I love him because…" She faltered. She didn't want to continue. She didn't know how to continue._

"_Go on…" Shikamaru gently coaxed._

"_I love him because he's the best in our class, I love him because everyone loves him, I love him because of his looks." Ino confessed, only know realising the horrible truth that was becoming increasingly clear to her. "Oh my God! I've been such an idiot!" _

"_You're way too good for him." Shikamaru smiled._

"_Thank you, Shikamaru..." Ino whispered, reaching forward and wrapping her slim arms around his neck, hugging him close. She felt him stiffen slightly, but he then hugged her back. _

_They sat there for a while, like that, not moving. The only sound came from their slow and steady breathing. Ino hated herself. She had spend so much time and energy on loving someone she didn't even love. She had changed her appearance countless time, even growing her hair because Sasuke apparently liked that. She had neglected her kunoichi training. She had wasted a huge part of her life._

_But Shikamaru, kind and wise Shikamaru, had shown her the light. He'd saved her from herself. Ino knew it sounded cliché, but she didn't care, because it was the truth. _

"_Thank you, Shikamaru..." she repeated. "I... care for you, too..."_

-End Flashback-

"Right! Let's do this!" Ino clapped her hands together.

She was very pleased with her appearance today. Because, instead of her usual purple, she had opted for a more daring colour scheme... namely, crimson. As she turned away from the mirror and towards the door, her hair swirled around her shoulders, loose for once. It was longer than she remembered, almost reaching her waist and flaring out at the end. She had also brushed her fringe behind her ear, so both blue eyes were visible.

"Alright, Shikamaru, you'd better be ready!"

Ino grinned and left the house in an excited mood. She couldn't wait to meet him! She was positive everything would go perfectly. After all, she had the True Love Jutsu working in her favour... right?

'_I wonder where he is…' _The blonde thought. _'I know he hasn't got any missions today, so he's probably around town somewhere.'_

She sighed in annoyance. This was going to be harder than she had expected. To tell the truth, she had kinda expected him to be right outside her front door. But that was apparently not the case. Ah well, putting some effort into it would only make the result that much more sweeter.

- With Shikamaru, Sasuke, Naruto and Neji -

**X**

"Pink means something is 'right', either with love or happiness." Shikamaru continued. "So that means Hinata is your 'right' person. Do you guys get it? In order for us to get back in our original bodies, is to get our one true love!"

His deduction was met with three blank stares. Well, two. Sasuke didn't let his shock be quite so visible. He only narrowed his eyes in confusion and doubt.

"Okay, I'll admit it sounds like a good theory-" Sasuke started.

"It's completely ridiculous!"

"- but there is no proof at all!" Sasuke finished, ignoring Naruto's outburst. "Granted, we can safely say that Naruto is 'right' with Hinata, but does that really mean anything at all?"

Shikamaru was about to answer, but Neji held up a hand to silence him. "I agree with Shikamaru-kun… everything he says makes sense. There is no other possibility to solve this problem. Just think about it, you two!"

Naruto shook his head. "Okay, let's assume you're right, then how do you explain this: if I want to change back, Hinata has to love me, right?" He waited for confirmation. "But I'm not _me_, I'm Sasuke to her. Or are you suggesting Sasuke should make her fall in love with him, so it's actually me?"

"He's right." Sasuke nodded at the blonde.

Neji and Shikamaru were silenced, not knowing any counter arguments to that.

Slowly, Neji spoke up. "What if… Naruto acts like himself around my cousin? She would fall in love with his personality, not who he is on the outside… right? And then, when we change back, he could go explain it all…" He said hesitantly.

"That makes sense." Shikamaru stated.

"I'm still not convinced." Sasuke bluntly said, folding his hands.

It was obvious there were now two teams: Naruto and Sasuke against Neji and Shikamaru.

"Hey, guys," Shikamaru eventually started. "We should go visit Hinata. In any case, no matter who is right, we still need more information on the chakra colour. So let's examine Naruto with the Sharingan and the Byakugan, alright?"

The other three agreed to that and they set out.

* * *

**/**

'_Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!' _

Ino was not usually nervous, she had way too much confidence for that. But now, seeing Shikamaru walk there, she felt like passing out.

'_How do I look? Am I ready? What should I say? Oh my God, he's here!' _

Ino quickly ran her hand through her hair one last time, making sure it was still how it should be. When she was satisfied with it, she took a deep breath to calm her nerves and turned to Shikamaru with a dazzling smile, lighting up her face.

"Hey, Shikamaru," she greeted.

"Hey, Ino," Shikamaru nodded at her.

"Um..." she started, twirling her fringe around her finger. "Can I speak to you... alone...?"

Shikamaru glanced at Sasuke, Naruto and Neji, who Ino only now noticed he was with. Naruto slowly nodded as if giving permission and Shikamaru seemed to give him a very meaningful look, motioning to his eyes. The blonde nodded once again, this time in understanding.

The two shinobi left the three males, stepping towards a small alley that separated two rows of houses. It was quiet. Their footsteps on the cobbled stone echoed against the wall, creating an even more tense atmosphere for Ino than before. The blonde leaned her back against the grey stone that made up the wall, partially hiding her face in the shadow so Shikamaru couldn't see her embarrassment at what she was about to do.

"Shikamaru..."

Her voice was low, like a susurration of different sounds. And even though the nervousness was clearly noticeable, it was still steady and strong.

"Shikamaru... I... love you..."

There. It was said.

Ino breathed a sigh of relief; she had never known confessing her feelings was so frightening, but she was glad she had done it regardless. Her mind flashed back to her constant obsessing over Sasuke. Back then, she had just thrown her feelings out there in the open, without a care. She knew now... that it hadn't been true love.

"Ino..."

She looked up, her breath hitching in her throat.

"I don't love you."

And that's when her world shattered.

"W-What...?" Ino stammered, her whole body frozen, purely out of shock. "Shikamaru... I... what are you talking about?"

She looked over at him, her feelings in turmoil. Surely he hadn't meant what he had just said... right? No, he couldn't have, Ino concluded. There was no way. No way at all. True love could not be broken this easily, destroyed, crushed, _murdered_. The blonde shook her head, her fringe falling back over her eye, where tears were threatening to leak out.

"I don't love you, Ino. I'm sorry. But I can't change my feelings." Shikamaru uttered, gently placing a hand on Ino's shoulder.

She shrugged it off, surprised at her own action, but discarded that thought. She shook her head again, reality becoming clearer and clearer. Shikamaru didn't love her. While this undeniable fact settled in her mind, the Chunin patiently waited, not wanting to cause her more despair.

"I'm sorry..."

"No, I'm sorry!" Ino finally shrieked, her voice laced with pain. "I'm sorry I ever thought you loved me! I'm sorry for troubling you! Just... Just go back to that Temari bitch!"

She lashed out, bringing her hand across his face, raking her sharp nail against his cheek. Shikamaru cursed and stepped back, small droplets of blood rolling out of the three red lines that now adorned his face. Ino twisted round, her red skirt flapping around her legs, her tears sparkling in the light of the sun. She ran out of the alley.

**X**

Neji groaned in pain, wiping away the blood on his cheek. Damn, her nails were _sharp_. He looked at the other end of the alley, where she had just disappeared. He felt sorry for Ino, but he knew he'd done the right thing. It was no secret, after all, that Shikamaru was in love with Temari. Even more decisive was the fact that Naruto had not seen any pink chakra when Ino had been in their vicinity.

'_What a mess we're in,' _Neji concluded, slowly shuffling back to the other boys.

* * *

Ino didn't know where she was going. She didn't care either. She just wanted to get away from the hurt and the pain and, most of all, Shikamaru. Deep inside her heart, though, she knew running was useless. No matter how far she would go, there was no escaping, ever.

People were looking at her now, wondering what had upset the Yamanaka girl so much.

Ino ignored them all. She just kept running until she reached a quiet place with no one else around. It was a small clearing on the outskirts of Konoha, with virtually nothing in it except for a large oak tree planted in the middle, small yellow flowers growing around the trunk. The second thing adorning the clearing was a cute, wooden bench.

Ino exhaled slowly, dropping herself onto the bench, staring at the sky.

"Ino..."

Her head snapped up and for a second, just for the smallest moment, she thought Shikamaru had come for her. But then the moment passed and she saw it was someone else entirely. She turned back to the sky again, not even sparing them a second glance.

"Ino... are you alright?"

'_What...? No way! It can't be...' _Thoughts were racing through her head. Because this moment was so reminiscent, so familiar of that one time so long ago. _'That day I moved on from Sasuke... do I have to move on once more?'_

"Sai," she chimed, slightly wary, wondering what was going to happen.

"You're crying," he declared, stating the obvious. "Why?"

His bluntness was nothing new to Ino. Sai wasn't one to beat around the bush and, honestly, she liked that aspect of him. Because she was the same. Nonetheless, she didn't really feel like talking to him at the moment. She was about to turn away from him, when Shikamaru's words rang through her head. She locked eyes with him.

"I... Shikamaru, he... he doesn't love me..."

"Shikamaru-kun?"

Ino nodded in affirmation. "I don't know how I'm supposed to keep going like this. First I find out I've been wasting my life on someone I don't even love and now I waste my life on someone who doesn't love me! Can't I get one moment of happiness!"

"Ino-chan..." Sai murmured soothingly. "You shouldn't cry over the past. You can't ever change it, so why not focus on something you _can _change? Forget Sasuke. Forget Shikamaru. And turn towards the future with its infinite possibilities."

'_Why is everyone so wise?' _Ino lowered her head in shame, embarrassed about how she had acted around Shikamaru.

"I want... a fresh start." Ino finally managed to say.

Sai placed his hand on hers. "Then do that. Right here, right now. The new Yamanaka Ino."

She grinned despite herself, motivated by his words. Yeah... she was definitely going to start again. She would become someone better, someone stronger than before. She was going to change.

"Thank you, Sai-kun..."

He smiled. And then did something surprised Ino tremendously. He gently brushed her fringe behind her ear to reveal both her wary eyes... and then he kissed her. Ino's eyes widened in shock, but then closed contently. She thought back to how this all started, with one simple Jutsu. A Jutsu that would let her find her one true love. Shikamaru had rejected her, so wasn't it natural to follow the new paths that had opened for her?

Sai was that new path.

Someone in between Sasuke and Shikamaru.

That was Sai.

* * *

**A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. There are about... five/six chapters left before the story's finished. I know, it seems so soon, right? **

**It was extremely hard to get the Sai/Ino scene right, because I thought it would be a bit unnatural if Ino instantly jumped on Sai or something! ;) But I hope it's good, nonetheless. **

**The next chapter will probably be about... hmmm... Hinata! ... I think. Please review and let me know what you think!  
**


	8. For Your Entertainment

_**Obtaining Your One True Love**_

**A/N: I'm so sorry for the late update! It's just been ridiculously busy with me lately, so I didn't really get a chance to write anything. Regardless, I hope you enjoy this chapter! It's my favourite one up till now! **

**Thank you: itachimeri1989, Cheetay, MariaSabaku, Timber Wolf of Purity, Green-Eyes-Love, Kittygirl316, MyAmaranthGrin, Alise-chan and LadyMartel4000 for reviewing. Plus, everyone who favourited or subscribed! Arigato, mina! Oh, and yoyoyo (anonymous), thanks for liking this story.  
**

**As always, remember to watch the signs:**

**X: I'm calling the characters by their original name regardless of whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Naruto even though he is in Sasuke)**

**/: I'm calling the characters by whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Sasuke because he is Sasuke)**

**Naruto = Sasuke  
Sasuke = Naruto  
Shikamaru = Neji  
Neji = Shikamaru**

**Warning(s): Kiba's mouth (and Naruto's).**

**

* * *

**Chapter 7: For Your Entertainment

"So… let me get this straight," Sakura began, breaking the shocked silence that hung over the room like a rainy cloud. "You're with _Sai _now!"

Ino had definitely not gone easy on the girls. Five minutes ago, she had bounced into the room, her face alight with excitement and her eyes shining with happiness. The others had initially concluded the True Love Jutsu had been completed and Ino was finally with Shikamaru… but she had surprised them all.

"Yep." Ino nodded fervently.

"How did this even happen…?" TenTen deadpanned.

Ino's bright mood faltered for a split second before she caught herself and grinned again. "I told Shikamaru I loved him. He told me he didn't. Simple. Sai was there for me when he wasn't… it's all the proof I need."

"But… but…" Hinata wasn't ready to just accept this. "I thought Shikamaru-kun was the one for you? How can you leave him like that so easily!"

Sakura nodded in agreement. "Yeah, Ino-chan… you've always been quick with the guys. Remember Sasuke? You went from him to Shikamaru in five minutes… are you sure about this? I mean, this _is _the love of our lives we're talking about?"

"I…" Ino's blond hair fell in front of her eyes as she lowered her head. "I just _know_. Trust me, alright, girls? I promise, you'll feel the same way soon."

"… Soon?" TenTen whispered.

Ino lifted her head back up, grinning like a maniac and causing the girls to shiver in fright. "The True Love Jutsu is going to hit you guys next!" She laughed. "I predict… you, Hinata-chan! Just you wait!"

Hinata rolled her eyes, subconsciously tuning out as Ino continued to rant about the True Love Jutsu. No matter what happened, the Hyuga still didn't believe in it. There was no way, just no way, that you could get true love by casting a simple Jutsu! Love had to be worked towards… had to be experienced… Love took time and required effort. Otherwise, what was the point?

Besides, even if she believed or not, she already had her love: Inuzuka Kiba.

"Hey, you guys," Hinata declared as she stood up. "I have to go now. My father wants me to help out with something for the clan. I'll see you all!"

"Yeah, have a nice time, Hinata-chan!" TenTen gave a small wave.

"See you!" Sakura beamed.

"Watch out for possible love!" Ino chuckled.

* * *

**X**

"You did the right thing, Neji-kun."

The statement came from the Chunin seated on the couch in the Uchiha manor living room. Like always, the boys had chosen Sasuke's house as their meeting place. At the moment, they were all scattered across the room, with Shikamaru and Naruto settled on the couch, Neji on a random chair and Sasuke standing in the centre of the room with folded arms.

"Regardless, I had no right to do what I did," Neji apologised again.

Even though they had been planning to go to Hinata to find out more about the pink chakra phenomena, they had opted to go home instead to discuss what had just transpired. An unexpected factor had come into the game: Yamanaka Ino. Neji had managed to improvise and deal with it, but now he felt guilty for meddling in Shikamaru's love life without permission.

"To tell you the truth, Neji," Shikamaru evinced. "I'm glad you handled it. It's too troublesome to deal with lovesick women."

"Come on! That's mean, Shikamaru!" Naruto whined. "Ino suits you."

"Yeah, but I don't _love_ her," he replied, like it was obvious. "Ino is nice and she's a great girl, but I love Temari."

There was a short silence, which Naruto abruptly broke, startling the others. "Wait a second! There was no pink chakra when Shikamaru met Ino! And he just said he didn't love her. You know... this is actually starting to make sense!"

"No..." Sasuke groaned. "Don't tell me you're believing them now?"

The blonde scratched the back of his head. "Well... maybe not _believe_, per se. But it does make sense... doesn't it?"

Neji nodded smugly. "I told you so. It all works out."

Sasuke gave him a glare. "What are we going to do now? Do you all still want to go to Hinata-san?"

"No," Shikamaru replied, speaking for the group. "The three of us believe in my theory, so there's no point. You, however, Naruto... _should _go to Hinata-san. She's your 'right' person, after all!"

The blonde blushed slightly despite himself. "W-Well... that's true, but..."

"And don't act like Sasuke. Let your own personality go."

* * *

**/**

Hyuga Hinata sighed softly, her breath escaping through her parted lips. She had just come back from her house after completing some work for her father, and she was now walking through the town. She had no real aim, but something drew her today. And since Hinata had nothing better to do at the moment, she settled on taking a short walk.

She allowed her thoughts to drift for a bit, but she soon realised they kept going back to Ino's words and, foremost, the True Love Jutsu.

'_No... she couldn't have been right...' _Hinata concluded. _'Just because she managed to make it work, doesn't mean it _actually _works!'_

"Hey, Hinata-chan,"

The young girl looked up, quite startled because she recognised the voice and thought the suffix was a bit unusual for him to use. She still smiled for him, though.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun. Out for a walk?" Hinata asked, starting the conversation. "I thought you were with Naruto-kun and the others today? Or, that's what Ino said..." She trailed off.

"I was, but we split up about ten minutes ago."

"Oh, okay," Hinata dipped her head, her raven hair swaying from left to right. "What are you going to do now?"

The Uchiha seemed to hesitate, but then he relaxed. "I haven't got anything planned. Hey, why don't we go eat somewhere together? It's almost evening, after all."

"Ah..."

Hinata was even more confused than before now. This was not the usual Sasuke behaviour. Maybe... maybe he really _had _changed. But that still didn't explain why he would want to go eat something with _her_. They barely even knew each other!

"Or have you got something else planned?" Sasuke pressed when he got no answer.

Hinata gave a quick smile. "No, I'll come. It'll be fun!"

Was this the result of the True Love Jutsu? Hinata didn't know and she didn't care. The two of them would just go as friends, nothing more. And even though Sasuke was not someone she had expected to hang out with, she would take a chance on anyone. Hinata liked that about herself; she wouldn't judge anyone by what they had done in the past... or what others said about them.

Hinata tilted her head to the side. "Where shall we go?"

"Lady's choice."

The Hyuga blushed slightly, but shook it off. "I know this great place!"

She grabbed Sasuke by the arm and pulled him along, laughing at his startled expression. Looking into her eyes, however, made his features soften. Letting her lead him, the two soon came to a halt outside a nice little restaurant. Hinata smiled when she remembered eating here with Kiba on one of their first dates.

The restaurant was situated on the edges of town, so it wasn't cramped between other houses and had a gentle and quiet atmosphere. The walls were an authentic, white brick and two windows gave a view of the inside, where a warm light came from. Candles with wooden supporters decorated the walls, their flickering light casting shadows on the ground and on the faces of guests.

'Konoha's Fairy Tale' was written on the side in swirly light letters.

"It looks really nice," Sasuke complimented. "Good choice."

"Thanks," the other replied. "Shall we go inside? It's already dark and it's getting kinda cold."

The Uchiha nodded in compliance and the two went inside, instantly greeted by a gush of warmth. The whole place was lit by candles alone, of all sizes and colours, giving the place a great atmosphere. Hinata led Sasuke to a table near a wooden staircase leading to the upper floor and the two sat down.

"This is amazing." Sasuke declared after glancing around the whole restaurant.

"I know, right?" Hinata grinned. "It's one of those places you discover by accident. I was walking around town a few years ago when I found this."

"Good evening, I'm Lucy, your waitress for tonight. Are you two comfortable?" An attractive blonde women had walked up to them, dressed in a black and white uniform and a skirt that was a little _too_ short. Her hair fell a little past her shoulders and was tied in a single pony tail on her right side. "Would you like anything to drink?"

Hinata nodded. "I'll have a tonic, please."

"And I'll go with a Kelluke."

"Right on." Lucy winked at him, causing him to roll his eyes.

Hinata felt sorry for him. Even though he was probably revered by everyone as a god (or as the complete opposite, according to some people...), the attention would get annoying after a while, no doubt. She glanced at Lucy again, who was now walking back to get their drinks.

"Do you get that a lot?" Hinata asked.

**X**

Naruto hesitated at the question. He didn't like answering in place of other people and he didn't want to go make assumptions on how Sasuke felt about all the attention he got. Still, he couldn't go and stay silent or it would raise suspicion.

"Yeah, not as much as three years ago, though," he eventually replied. "It can get pretty annoying, but I've gotten used to it."

Hinata nodded thoughtfully. "It's funny how you're the complete opposite of Naruto-kun: he's not noticed at all. And yet, knowing you a bit more now... you kinda remind me of him. I guess you two aren't that different, really!" She gave a lopsided smile.

Naruto watched her in appreciation. She was right, of course. Even if he wasn't really Sasuke right now, he knew that teme better than most people. And he knew they were pretty alike sometimes. Hinata was very perceptive, Naruto concluded. And smart.

"Here you go, you two." Lucy cheerfully said as she placed the drinks on the table.

"Thanks." Naruto absently said, still looking at the Hyuga.

Lucy left in annoyance, but the two of them didn't really notice. They continued chatting and ended up having a great meal and a great time.

* * *

**X**

The days following their dinner were all normal and Naruto and Hinata hadn't really spoken since. Until... four days after. Being the middle of the summer, the sun was shining extra brightly today, sending rays of warmth down right into the Hyuga garden.

And that's where Hinata was lying. Since it was between morning and afternoon, the grass was still slightly damp, but in a nice refreshing way. The Hyuga heiress turned around to lie on her back, her loose cotton shorts revealing her legs, which were slightly tanned. Her raven hair was not tied and splayed around her face like a dark veil.

"Haven't you got a mission today?" Hiashi asked as he walked out of the house.

"Hmm?" Hinata squinted in the sunlight. "No... it's my day off."

"Are you sure it's appropriate to be exposing yourself like that?" Her father doubtfully said, motioning to her tight shirt. "You are the heiress of the Hyuga family, after all."

She turned on her stomach, facing him. "Dad, everybody wears this! Besides, I'm not going out today anyway!"

Hiashi chuckled. "Alright." He nodded and went back inside to check on Hanabi.

Hinata rolled over again. Her father meant well, she knew, even if he could be a bit annoying and overprotective at times. Honestly, he had changed so much since the Chunin Exams three years ago that it was almost surreal; he had put himself over his hatred for his brother and had let Neji live with them. He was also much kinder and more open to his family, wanting them to live together in peace.

"Hinata-chan!"

She opened her eyes in surprise when the sun was abruptly blocked by the figure of a _very _familiar person.

She groaned. "Sasuke-kun..."

"Do you want to go grab a bite in town?"

"Sure," she smiled.

Hinata held out her hand and Naruto took it, entwining their fingers and pulling her up. She yelped softly when he put a little too much force into the action and she got pushed against his chest. Naruto chuckled apologetically and Hinata joined in. Soon the two were laughing for no reason at all, supporting each other.

"Let me quickly go put on something else, 'kay?" Hinata hurriedly put on her sandals - stumbling a bit - and ran towards the house with an apologetic grin on her face.

Even though she cared about her appearance and wanted to look her best, Hinata wasn't as bad as the other girls. So she simply grabbed a different shirt (a cute, dark pink one with a black swirly print near the top) and left her shorts and sandals on. It was way to sunny to wear anything else, after all.

"Alright, I'm ready!" Hinata yelled as she ran out of the house.

Naruto sweat dropped, still in the exact same place he was in before. Hinata smiled and the two left for town.

This time, Naruto chose their destination and he soon settled on a restaurant in the centre of town. It was pretty busy, but luckily they still managed to score a table outside. They were wooden and white parasols stood erect in the centre. Hinata and Naruto were both sipping their drinks and talking a bit, when the conversation turned to relationships.

"So, what do you think about Sakura-chan?" Hinata asked, deciding to do some match-making.

"I... I like her," he hesitantly replied. "Just... not right now."

"A fallout?" Hinata sympathetically said.

"Something like that..."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she chimed, lowering her head. "But I'm sure it will turn out alright! I mean, Sakura-chan told us she, well, liked you, too." She laughed at his sullen expression. "Hey, cheer up! Be happy you have a great friend like me!"

Naruto grinned. "Yeah, what would I do without you?"

His eyes slid towards Hinata. He had never realised how pretty she was before: her hair looked so silky and he loved how she had casually brushed it behind her ear, loose strands falling on her shoulders; her lavender eyes were so mysterious and the way her slender fingers held onto the cup in her hands was so elegant.

'_But, what about Sakura-chan...?' _The thought flashed through his head. _'No. She loves Sasuke, so I have no chance anyway. Besides, Hinata-chan is my 'right' person.' _

The Jinchuriki stood up and walked towards Hinata, almost as if he was in a trance. He slowly took her hand and lifted her up, ignoring her bemused expression. He put his free hand on the small of her back, supporting her.

"You're much prettier than Sakura," he murmured. "I think... I might love you."

"Sasuke-kun..."

He moved closer, their lips were almost touching. Hinata could his feel his warm breath on her face. She could feel her heart going crazy in her chest, threatening to break her ribcage. And yet she didn't pull back from him.

"Sasuke, what the fuck are you doing!"

Hinata gasped and instantly pulled her herself away, her eyes wide in fear. Kiba was standing in the middle of the road, shaking in anger with balled fists. Naruto cursed quietly and glanced at Hinata, seeing her frightened expression. He knew he had a choice now: walk away or take the confrontation,

"You bastard! Keep your hands away from my girl!"

"Kiba!"

"Stay out of this, Hinata!" Kiba yelled. "What are you trying at, Sasuke-teme!"

Naruto held up his hands. "Calm down, Kiba. It's not what it looks like... Just give us a minute to explain it all to you. It's all a misunderstanding! We-"

_SMACK!_

"God damn it!"

"Sasuke!"

Hinata ran up to the two boys, tears streaming down her face. "Kiba, stop it! Stop it!" She grabbed his wrist and pulled him back from the blonde, who was now on the ground, clutching his head in pain.

"Let go of me, Hinata." Kiba growled with balled fists, glaring at Naruto. A few drops of blood dripped onto the ground from his hand.

"Kiba..."

She looked into his eyes and the two stood there like that for a few moments. Eventually, Kiba's features softened and he seemingly calmed down. The tenseness disappeared from his muscles and he slacked. Hinata nodded quietly and released his wrist, taking a step back and wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Sasuke..." she whispered, crouching down beside him. "Are you okay?"

"Damn it," he groaned. "Ah, that _hurts_!"

Naruto lifted up his head, his now black locks falling over his onyx eyes, which were filled with pain and annoyance and... something else. Was that love? No. Hinata shook her head; she didn't want to deal with his confession.

"Ah!" Hinata gasped softly when she saw the blood on his cheek. "Sasuke-kun... Kiba! Get some water for me!" She turned to his motionless form. "... Please..."

That final syllable seemed to snap Kiba out of his trance, causing him to run inside the restaurant to get the liquid. Hinata watched him go before turning back to Naruto, placing her hand on his cheek and caressing it gently, trying to gently soothe him. She smiled at the other, putting him at ease.

"It's nothing serious," she concluded. "It will bruise, though, but I should be able to heal that."

"Heal?" Naruto looked at her in confusion. He wasn't aware that she was a healer. As far as he knew, Sakura and Ino were the only two medical shinobi of the original Rookie 9. "Since when can you...?

"Oh, of course, you wouldn't know because you were..." She quickly caught herself, not wanting to insult him or anything. "_Away_ at the time. I... well, my Chakra level is probably the highest among the Rookie 9 - excluding Naruto, of course - and Kurenai-sensei taught me how to control it properly. So, yeah, I can do the basic healing. Not as good as Sakura-chan or Ino-chan, though." She winked. **(1)**

Naruto didn't like this, not one bit. Why didn't he know Hinata could do this? Wasn't she supposed to be his 'right' person? Did he pay _that _little attention to her that he didn't even notice something like that? He sighed in disappointment. Well, at least she thought he was Sasuke, so he had a valid reason.

"I'm sorry... for not noticing."

"I... Thank you, Sasuke."

Hinata's palm began glowing with a soft white light, reminiscent of the colour of the Byakugan. Her Chakra entered his body, deftly finding the injury and trying to repair it as best as possible. Within seconds, it was over. Naruto hadn't felt a thing.

"It looks alright, I guess." Hinata cocked her head to the side, examining his skin.

She removed her hand from his cheek, turning around to see Kiba walking over to them with a stone jar of water. He didn't seem to be in any particular hurry. Hinata refrained from commenting, instead slowly washing away the blood that was still on Naruto's cheek.

"There. You're all good now."

"Hinata," Kiba suddenly started. "Can I just talk to you for a minute... _alone_?"

The Hyuga heiress glanced at Naruto, before excusing herself and walking off with Kiba until they were well out of earshot. The blonde continued to stare at them, still cursing at the dog-boy for ruining their moment together. Hell, maybe he ruined his chance of returning to his own body!

There was a short pause, before Kiba spoke to his girlfriend. "I... I'm breaking up with you."

Hinata was frozen, emotions mixing together in her head. She was sad, shocked, hurt and yet... somehow, she had been expecting this. She didn't know how. But she knew. Still, that didn't make it hurt any less. Because, no matter what anyone thought, she loved Kiba. With all her heart.

A single tear slid down her cheek.

"Hinata-chan," Kiba murmured in regret. "I love you, you know I do. But I... I just need a break. I think we both do."

The Hyuga nodded solemnly. "I understand."

He turned away.

* * *

'_I don't understand. My feelings are so messed up right now!' _Hinata groaned and rolled over, burying her face in her white, fluffy pillow. She was still dressed in the same clothes from that afternoon, not bothering to change, and had been lying on her bed since she had come home.

She rolled over again, turning towards the window. In a trance-like state, she drew up the pale blinds to reveal the endless starry night laid out before her. Hinata sighed, sitting down on the window still and leaning her head against the cool glass.

'_Okay, let's put everything in perception. I love Kiba, I really do. So why didn't I push away when Sasuke-?' _Hinata sighed. _'I can't be love, can it? Right? I mean, Sasuke and I don't even know each other that well... We barely even spoke before... well, a few days ago. So there's no way he'd suddenly come out and declare his love for me. It just doesn't make any sense..."_

'_And yet, he _did_ do it. I can't deny that, not ever.'_

'_So, could it be... the True Love Jutsu, after all? I mean, it would make sense. Jutsu's don't have to make sense, they're just 'right', that's it. They just happen. Pretty stupid, actually... some stupid Jutsu is stopping me from choosing my own fate - it's taken away my free will, literally.' _She paused. _'No, that's not true. Thinking back, it has only served as a guide. A very forceful one, at that.'_

'_God, my love life is so messed up! Kiba or Sasuke? They both have good and bad points, but even listing them doesn't help me decide. What do I do? Kiba or Sasuke? To tell the truth, Sasuke is surprising me: I never knew he had a personality like this. He's so... happy and carefree and kind and... amazing. He reminds me... of Naruto."_

Hinata gasped, knowing what was going on. It was like stepping out of a haze of mist and finally seeing clear again. How could she have been so blind? It was unbelievable. She shut her eyes, gathering her thoughts.

'_I don't love Sasuke. No way, the idea is too ridiculous! I'm in love with Sasuke's personality. Why? Because it reminds me of Naruto's personality. I guess, in the end, I never truly got over my little crush.'_

'_Kiba... or Naruto'_

She opened her eyes. "I've made my decision."

* * *

**(1) - Let's separate fact from fiction, shall we? It;s 100% true that Hinata has the highest Chakra level out of the Rookie 12 (I know it's actually Rookie 9, shut up), but she most certainly can't heal. Just please bear with me, here. **

**

* * *

**

**A/N: I'm sorry if Hinata was a bit (very much) OOC. It's just... I love Hinata and all, but only when she's not a nervous wreck. Hinata is powerful and beautiful and she needs to see that in herself. So I made her much more confident in this story, the way I would love her to be.**

**Also, hurray for endless Fairy Tail references throughout this chapter. XD. I'm sorry, but I just couldn't resist. I'm completely OBSESSED with that anime! **

**And finally, please review and let me know what you think. Kiba or Naruto, you guys? Kiba or Naruto?  
**


	9. Victims Of Love

_**Obtaining Your One True Love**_

**A/N: Sorry for the lateness. I've been really, really busy with school. I've only got a few months left to get my grades to a certain level, otherwise I can't pass and I'll have to redo this year, so... bear with me, please. **

**Thank you: Cheetay, MyAmaranthGrin, Green-Eyes-Love, 8-8 ary-chan 8-8, Twixflix4fun, LadyMartel4000, MariaSabaku, RoSeXiIiI, MrsDeidara and Reedoh.**

**myairis: Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad you like the story and I hope you enjoy this chapter. **

**NOTICE: at the end of this chapter, in the Shikamaru/Temari scene, I recommend listening to a certain piece of music. It's what I listened to to get inspiration and it really sets the mood for that scene. Just go to YouTube and search for: 'Doctor Who Rose's Theme'. It should be the first result you get.  
**

**As always, remember to watch the signs:**

**X: I'm calling the characters by their original name regardless of whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Naruto even though he is in Sasuke)**

**/: I'm calling the characters by whose body they're in. (example, Naruto is called Sasuke because he is Sasuke)**

**Naruto = Sasuke  
Sasuke = Naruto  
Shikamaru = Neji  
Neji = Shikamaru**

* * *

Chapter 8: Victims Of Love 

**/**

TenTen steadily continued on her way, carrying a crimson scroll with black markings in her hand. She lifted her head up to the sky, enjoying the rays of sunlight falling onto her face. She loved the warmth, the way it caressed her. She wished it could be summer every day, truly.

The fact that Team Gai hadn't had any missions for the past few weeks was a luxury and extremely rare, but at the same time… TenTen really wanted to be out in the field again. Even if it was just catching a stray cat or something, she loved just being together with her team. Gai-sensei, Lee and… Neji.

TenTen sighed, lowering her head. A stray lock of hair had escaped from her bun, now dangling in front of her eye. She brushed it away, annoyed. She groaned when it persistently fell back in place. After pushing it aside a few more times, TenTen gave up, untying both buns and letting her brown hair fall down.

'_That actually feels nice…' _

TenTen was not accustomed to wearing her hair outside of her buns. She felt it got in the way too much during training and fighting. But, unlike Sakura and Ino, she couldn't bare cutting her long, wavy, dark hair. She loved it too much!

Now that she thought about it, not many people had seen her with loose hair, not even the girls. Only three people had: Gai, Lee and Neji. She knew most people perceived her as a tomboy, which was true, but she _did _like fashion and dressing up. She just didn't do it too often - it got in the way with being a kunoichi.

Thinking about fashion, made her glance down at her clothes. Instead of her usual pink shirt, she had opted for a darker colour with the silhouettes of twin dragons entwined together. She had also tied a pair of dark pink bracelets around her wrists, finished her outfit.

"TenTen!"

She looked up, her hair swaying. "Hinata!" she grinned.

"Wow..." The Hyuga heiress exclaimed. "Your hair!" She gently stroked it. "It's so beautiful - you should wear it more often..."

TenTen blushed despite herself. "It would just get in the way."

Hinata drew back her hand, frowning. "I don't think it's that bad... I wear my hair loose," she murmured, before smiling. "Hey, you know what? Why don't you try it like this for your next mission? Or... you could wear it in a ponytail - I bet it would look nice!"

"I'll do that." TenTen smiled.

There was a short silence before the brunette remembered _why_ she had come here in the first place. She quickly held up the scroll. "I had to give this to Team Kurenai, but I couldn't find any of the other members. It's from Gai-sensei, by the way."

"You couldn't?" Hinata furrowed her brow, taking the scroll. "Hmm, Kiba is probably in-"

She stopped.

TenTen looked at her in confusion, only now noticing the exhausted shine in her lavender eyes. It wasn't physical, though, more mental.

"What's wr-?"

"Hinata!" A voice called and the two girls glanced up to see the other Hyuga - Neji.

Hinata beamed and her eyes lit up, though TenTen noted the exhaustion was still present, however slight. She ran towards her cousin and literally jumped on him, hugging him close. Neji was startled, taking a step back in surprise but keeping his balance.

He sighed. "Troublesome girl."

"Hmm? Have you been hanging around with Shikamaru again?"

"Um..." Neji was lost for words, seemingly scolding himself mentally. "Not really. I guess I'm just a little tired or something. Hey, Hinata-chan, how have you been? Is Hiashi well?"

The Hyuga heiress nodded, quickly filling him in while also inquiring as to why he had been gone for almost a week straight. He didn't show it, but Hiashi had been worried about his nephew, even though he knew he was a Jounin and could handle himself in any situation. Hinata had been less concerned, knowing Neji wouldn't get into trouble. Besides, he was seventeen, he didn't need to be home _all _the time.

"I'll go tell Hiashi I'm alright," Neji stated, motioning to the mansion.

"Alright."

The Hyuga smoothly carried himself over to the building. Within a few seconds, he was passing TenTen, not sparing her a single glance of acknowledgement. The brunette's eyes widened in anger and she clenched her fists, her fingernails digging in her palms. It hurt. But she didn't care - in fact, it served a nice little distraction, however small.

"I've got to go."

"Ah, okay," Hinata said, a little startled by the sudden declaration.

TenTen started walking away.

"Hey, TenTen?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you... alright?"

She turned around with a big grin on her face, her hands behind her back, standing in a carefree and innocent pose.

"I'm fine."

* * *

**X**

Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke and Hyuga Neji waited patiently for the fourth member of their little group to arrive. The now-blonde raven had reluctantly started believing in the pink chakra phenomena - though he was still a bit sceptical - and they had all agreed to each go after their _right _person.

... As soon as Shikamaru had returned, that was.

"Neji, who do you think is your right person?" Naruto wondered, turning to the one in Shikamaru's body.

"Hmm?" He appeared slightly taken aback by question. "Ha, I guess it has to be TenTen." Neji declared, the faintest blush tinting his pale cheeks.

Naruto nodded at that. He could see them work. But it would all come down to the pink chakra to see if they _truly _belonged together. The once blonde whirled round to face the other male, fixating his now obsidian eyes on him.

"And you, Sasuke?"

The question hung in the air. The Uchiha stared at the other, startled. Not because of the question, but because the lack of an answer. He honestly _didn't _know. Sasuke had never been one to focus on love; revenge had always been his number one priority, but now, with everything done, should he _start_ focusing on love? _Could _he even do that?

"Oi, Sasuke-teme! Snap out of it!"

The names of all the girls flitted through his mind, their faces filling his head. Hyuga Hinata? No, he hardly knew her. Yamanaka Ino? Though he had to admit she was very attractive, Sasuke knew she was not the girl for him. Besides, it would be one-sided, anyway. TenTen? They had no real connection. Sabaku no Temari? No, he didn't like her much.

... Karin?

Sasuke grinned, remembering the fiery red-head. After defeating Madara, she had gone to lead her own life. He did miss her sometimes. True, she was ridiculously annoying, but she was so much fun to be around, as well. But love? No... thinking back to the short relationship they had, it was more lust than anything.

... Haruno Sakura...?

The scene that had occurred last week flashed through his head: Sakura didn't love him, she had said so herself - albeit indirectly. On the contrary, she loved Naruto.

'_It's kind of ironic,' _Sasuke noted with a bemused smile. _'Team 7... it's like everything's been reversed. Everybody loves someone else... but what about me...?'_

"I love-"

"Hey, it's Shikamaru!"

Sasuke faltered as his words were lost in Naruto's excited cry. And true enough, there was Shikamaru, moving towards them with a bored expression marring his features, one which looked very out of place on Neji's face.

"Did you speak with my uncle?" The real Neji asked, getting straight to the point.

"Yeah, and with Hinata, too. They're both fine," Shikamaru replied.

A relieved expression flitted across Neji's face, before he turned serious again. "Okay, everyone. I think we're ready to start this." He looked around the group expectantly. "In order for us to get back our real bodies, we need our one true loves. So let's split up and do this."

Sasuke nodded in agreement, wanting to wrap this up as soon as possible.

"So, I'm after Temari, Naruto's going after Hinata, Neji's with-"

"TenTen."

"TenTen," Shikamaru added to his list. "And Sasuke's going with...?"

The raven was now 99% sure of his answer. He was hesitant about adding that final one percent, because he was inexperienced with his own feelings, let alone those of others. But then ago, it was not his choice to make... it all came down to the pink chakra. Regardless, he would try his hardest to resolve this situation.

"It's..."

* * *

**/**

TenTen was seething in ager. No, not anger, more like a vicious rage. Maybe she was overreacting, TenTen didn't know, nor did she care. Right now, she just wanted to be angry, a plain and simple emotion without complications.

She raised her head when she heard voices, brushing some brown locks out of her eyes; she hadn't bothered tying it back into buns. Sasuke, Naruto, Shikamaru... and _Neji_, were all talking together, looking like they were about to leave.

TenTen felt the rage bubbling within her, threatening to burst out at any moment. Small jabs, spikes, crossed her normal levels, passing them easily. In all honesty, she didn't know how to deal with this. She had never felt this, not this angry.

'_I have to walk away,'_ Her sensible side, still ever present, reasoned.

But she didn't. She couldn't.

It was like she was nailed to the ground, being forced to only watch and not being able to do anything. Not that she knew what to do in the first place.

And then it happened. Neji glanced at her, his pearl eyes going over her. It only took one second - no, even less- before he had turned away again, not even bothering to say anything. Not even bothering to acknowledge her. She saw him whisper something to Shikamaru, who smiled and nodded, and the rage flared again. _Was he making fun of her?_

She closed her eyes, thought swirling through her mind, though not making any coherent sense.

And then she did something she had never expected to do, ever. It was so unlike herself, that she was sure she was more surprised than anyone else.

One second, she was standing rooted to the ground. The next, she was screaming at Neji for being a bastard. And then, she was kissing Shikamaru.

"TenTen," Shikamaru gasped as they broke apart.

"I..." she managed to whisper, before she faltered and lapsed into silence. She was shocked; she had just wanted to show Neji what it felt like being ignored, so then... why did that kiss feel so good? Why did it feel like the most right thing in the world?

"TenTen," Shikamaru repeated, his expression mirroring hers.

"Neji?" she tried, glancing at the Hyuga.

Said shinobi cleared his throat. "Um, I think we should get going, ne, Sasuke, Naruto?"

They all nodded and left, leaving TenTen alone with Shikamaru. All the anger had disappeared, leaving her with only nothingness inside her. And as she watched Neji walk away, soft tears trailed down her cheeks. Shikamaru wrapped his arms around her body, pressing her against him, and she complied, broken inside.

"TenTen, look at me," he ordered.

"What?" she snapped, not caring what he thought of her.

"I am... I am not Shikamaru."

This _did_ make her look at him, though in complete and utter disbelief. "_What_?"

Realising he was no longer bound to silence, he started explaining. It took quite a while and he was surprised that TenTen hadn't left already, but was still listening, an unreadable expression on her face.

"So why have you not changed then, _Neji_?"

He paused. She was right: why hadn't he changed? Did this mean TenTen was _not_ the one for him, after all? No, that couldn't be right. They belonged together.

"I think... I think it's because my own body is still occupied," he eventually offered.

TenTen smiled and kissed him. "You know what's crazy? I believe you."

* * *

**X**

Shikamaru was nervous.

Nonetheless, he continued walking, one step at a time, clearing his head, calming his nerves. He knew he messed up last time, but now... he would succeed. He would get her to understand - he _had_ to. Not only for his sake, but for Neji's, as well, and TenTen.

And there she was.

Temari looked as beautiful as ever. Not the classic beauty, which Ino possessed, but one of a different kind. A beauty that Shikamaru preferred.

"Temari," he called out, stepping into her line of sight.

Her sky blue eyes showed a hint of sadness, but a smile was in place, though Shikamaru could easily tell it was fake. She folded her arms against her chest, putting up her defences. A small jab of pain went through Shikamaru, but he didn't blame her; he would have acted the same way if their roles had been reversed.

"Neji-kun..." she stated. "We've gone over this... I don't love you. I-"

"Just listen to me, please," he said, cutting her off. "This is not about Neji. It's about Shikamaru."

"Shikamaru?" Temari's eyes widened a fraction. "What's wrong? Is he hurt?"

The Chunin shook his head. "I'm... _he's_ fine. But something's happened to him, not just him actually, to others as well. I'm sorry I can't explain any more - I'm tongue-tied. So, please, Temari, just... trust me."

The sand shinobi took a step backwards out of pure instinct, the sand crunching beneath her feet, and rested her hand against the Konoha gate, in the shade cast by the trees.

"Trust me," Shikamaru repeated.

He took a step towards her, and then another one, and another one. He soon stood before Temari, a little thought of doubt going through his head that he hastily pushed aside.

Before he could change his mind, before Temari could object, Shikamaru gently took her chin and pressed his lips against hers. He used no tongue. The kiss was full of respect, love and longing... not lust.

'_Trust me...'_

* * *

**A/N: A little shorter than usual, but I hope you enjoy, nonetheless_. _I also apologise for not giving TenTen and Neji a big scene like the rest of the characters. It's because I find it really, really hard to write them, so that's why it's so short. It's the same with Temari.**

**But don't worry, I've got something big planned for Hinata, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura. **

**Constructive criticism is highly appreciated! So please don't hesitate speaking your mind.  
**


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